State of AI in the Enterprise, 2nd Edition

For the second straight year, Deloitte surveyed executives in the US knowledgeable about cognitive technologies and artificial intelligence,1 representing companies that are testing and implementing them today. We found that these early adopters2 remain bullish on cognitive technologies' value. As in last year's survey, the level of support for AI is truly extraordinary. These findings illustrate that cognitive technologies hold enticing promise, some of which is being fulfilled today. However, AI technologies may deliver their best returns when companies balance excitement over their potential with the ability to execute. To obtain a cross-industry view of how organizations are adopting and benefiting from cognitive computing/AI, Deloitte surveyed 1,100 IT and line-of-business executives from US-based companies in Q3 2018. All respondents were required to be knowledgeable about their company's use of cognitive technologies/artificial intelligence, and 90 percent have direct involvement with their company's AI strategy, spending, implementation, and/or decision-making. The respondents represent 10 industries, with 17 percent coming from the technology industry. Fifty-four percent are line-of-business executives, with the rest IT executives. Sixty-four percent are C-level executives--including CEOs, presidents, and owners (30 percent), along with CIOs and CTOs (27 percent)--and 36 percent are executives below the C-level.3 A year later, and the thrill isn't gone. In Deloitte's 2017 cognitive survey, we were struck by early adopters' enthusiasm for cognitive technologies.4 That excitement owed much to the returns they said cognitive technologies were generating: 83 percent stated they were seeing either "moderate" or "substantial" benefits.