Gartner reported that only 3% of companies are currently exceeding their cost-saving targets through productivity gains derived from artificial intelligence. The findings, presented at Gartner's HR Symposium in Orlando, indicated that 97% of organizations are unable to achieve cost savings through productivity alone. CV Viverito, senior director analyst for Gartner's HR practice, stated that organizations will not generate cost savings from AI at this point, adding, "The greater opportunity is to use AI to do things that weren't possible before, such as shifting employee time into new capabilities, outcomes, and sources of growth."
Despite these findings, 85% of companies plan to increase their AI spending in the coming year, while nearly four in ten companies are already over budget on their AI expenditures. The survey of 297 chief HR officers also revealed that 78% reported no agreement among leaders on where AI creates value. PwC's latest Global CEO survey, completed by 4,454 chief executive officers across 95 countries in January, had previously shown that 56% of CEOs had seen no cost or revenue benefits since introducing AI to their businesses.
Furthermore, a 2025 MIT report stated that 95% of AI implementations do not increase profits, and a 2024 survey found generative AI could actually be harming productivity at work. Gartner recommended that businesses focus investment where AI can make a difference, help managers redesign work, and utilize existing AI expertise, and suggested that only 21% of the time freed up by AI went toward more innovative work.
