The AI Operations Report 2026

Go Inside 800 Organizations Running AI

A new research report from Coastal and Oxford Economics, based on a survey of 800 U.S. business and technology leaders using AI in their organizations.

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AI investment and confidence are high, but results are lagging.

Most organizations have learned to deploy AI. The work of running it is where 2026 programs stall.

84%

Of leaders say AI is making them more competitive.

74%

Are increasing AI investment in the year ahead.

46%

Say AI hasn’t met expectations.

How to Use the Report

Benchmark Your Program

See where your AI initiatives stand against 800 organizations across industries and operating budgets from $100M to over $20B. Find out why 73% of organizations are still hitting adoption walls.

Spot the Patterns

Understand what separates organizations getting more from AI from those getting less, and where the operational gaps show up. Organizations with dedicated AI teams are 3.6X more likely to have autonomous AI in production.

Apply the Findings

Get practical best practices for running AI as an ongoing operational discipline, not a one-time launch event. Learn how leading organizations are tackling the data challenges that impact 88% of AI programs.

Get the Frameworks

Use the frameworks built into the report to drive team conversations and decisions, including tools to help close the Bandwidth Gap affecting the 58% of organizations struggling to resource AI effectively.

We spent more time on the idea on paper and less on how AI would actually work day to day.

Chief Digital Officer

Meet Our AI Experts

Eric Berridge
CEO

Brian Gannuscio
Chief Digital Officer

Sam Taylor
Senior Director, Innovation & Emerging Technology

Danny Lee
Director of Sales, Data & AI Strategy

The work of making AI work in 2026 is operational.

This report digs into the AI business trends that show what that looks like across 800 organizations.

Get the Report
Get the Report

By submitting this form, I understand that Coastal will process my information in accordance with its Privacy Policy, which may include sharing my data with sponsoring partners. I may receive marketing communications with exclusive invitations, relevant tips, insider perks, and more. I understand that I can unsubscribe at any time by following the unsubscribe link at the bottom of any email I receive. To learn more, please visit our privacy policy.