The AI landscape for 2026: Our experts share their thoughts

Happy New Year to you all. We’ve been looking at what’s ahead for 2026. Conversations have naturally turned to what is in store for AI in the coming year, and we’ve collected thoughts and predictions from our experts to share with you. 

The headlines are:

• Leaders will stop managing complexity and start inspiring clarity
• AI today is where the internet was in 2000 – and not all will survive
• Real-time insights will become standard across all sectors
• The era of AI experimentation is giving way to the era of AI execution

Predictions from Insight Delivered’s CEO, Vijay Iyer

As leaders, we often look at the year ahead through the lenses of challenge and opportunity. 2025 was a tough year for many, but for me, 2026 feels like a turning point: a year where clarity, insight and trust will define how – and if – organisations move forward.

In general, I believe 2026 will bring three big shifts:

1. From dashboards to decisions

Business intelligence will evolve beyond static reporting. Leaders and their teams will expect modular, role-based views that adapt in real time to market shifts. The organisations that succeed will be those that design analytics not as ‘tools’ but as decision frameworks that empower every role with the right level of insight.

2. Compliance will become a competitive differentiator

What was once seen as a regulatory burden will become a competitive advantage. Automated compliance, transparent invoicing, and seamless integration with audit authorities will build trust with customers and partners. In 2026, compliance will move from the back office to the front line of brand reputation.

3. Progress tracking for people

Just as we measure KPIs for operations, 2026 will see a stronger emphasis on tracking human progress, whether in employee development or talent coaching. Feedback loops, outcome focused training, and clarity in growth paths will become central to leadership. Because talent deserves the same rigour as transactions.

For me, 2026 is about bridging operational rigour with human progress. When technology and proactive insights are inclusive, and visions are clear, leaders will stop managing complexity and instead inspire confidence and clarity.

“I’m excited to help shape that journey, and I believe the leaders who embrace these shifts will not only navigate change, but set the pace for their industries.”

Predictions from Ian Kerr, Commercial Director

With my Commercial Director hat on, there are exciting things to come at Insight Delivered. We’re very well placed to bring incremental value to our clients, and 2025 saw us work with a range of new clients and provide bespoke solutions that delivered excellent results.

As Spiderman’s Uncle once said: “With great power comes great responsibility”. Nowhere is this truer than with AI. 

I watched with interest as the hype around AI in 2025 resulted in inflated valuations and unashamed bandwagon-jumping, prompted by a fear of missing out. To me, if feels a bit like March 2000 – the peak of the internet boom. But of course, from that inevitable correction, we saw some great companies and world-changing technology emerge. I think the same thing is likely to happen with AI.

“The AI companies that survive will be those who have been delivering proven solutions for many years, and where there is a clear focus on giving businesses a reliable, effective solution that brings measurable ROI. I firmly believe Insight Delivered is one of those companies.”

Despite fears about where it might lead in the future, first and foremost, AI is there to augment what we humans are already doing, bringing insights and efficiencies that let us do more. 

Our first conversation with a client is always to talk about how critical it is to have robust data management and strong data governance to get the most out of AI. Ultimately, the success of any AI system depends on the quality of the unified data set it works from. Insight Delivered has an excellent data exchange platform, and a proven approach that makes sure clients are in the best position from the very start.

We’re already working across several key industry sectors, working with clients to solve a single commercial challenge initially, and then rolling out our AI solution across the business, once it has proven its value – which it always does.

2026 has a lot to look forward to, and I’m confident that Insight Delivered, with its outstanding development teams and focus on genuine and measurable commercial outcomes, will weather whatever AI storm may be coming.

Predictions from Chand Mohammad, Insight Delivered’s Product Director

2025 was largely a testing ground for AI where we saw a year of pilots, proof-of-concepts, and significant investment across industries. Enterprises explored what was possible. In 2026, the conversation shifts from experimentation to execution.

This is the year when organisations will begin to clearly see, measure, and demand ROI from AI initiatives.

“At Insight Delivered, AI is not something we started experimenting with recently with the dawn of LLMs. We have been vigilant and intentional in embedding AI into our platforms for years, always focused on governance, accuracy, and real business outcomes rather than hype.”

In 2026, our QEA product suite will move decisively from intelligence to impact:

• DeX (Data Exchange) will become smarter in how it connects, validates, and harmonises data across complex enterprise ecosystems, significantly reducing manual effort and accelerating time to insight.
• QSF (QEA Strategic Finance) will apply AI-driven scenario modelling, forecasting, and sensitivity analysis to help CFOs shift from static planning to continuous, forward-looking decision-making.
• QEA AutoLens will leverage AI to surface actionable insights across sales, stock, margins, and operational performance, enabling individual car dealerships and multi-site enterprise dealers to improve profitability with clarity and confidence.
• QEA CharterLens, purpose-built for Shipping Charter companies, will introduce AI-enabled visibility across charter performance, voyage economics, compliance, and risk thereby helping operators optimise decisions in a highly dynamic and cost-sensitive environment.

What matters most in 2026 is not AI for its own sake, but AI that produces measurable outcomes: faster decisions, reduced operational friction, improved margins, stronger governance, and better customer experiences.

As we enter the new year, our focus is clear: to help our clients transform operational complexity into clarity and clarity into sustainable competitive advantage. We’re excited to keep delivering that reality to our current clients, and giving new customer the clarity and power they’re looking for.

Predictions from Sales Director, Alex Castle

I joined Insight Delivered in the final quarter of 2025, and have had some fascinating conversations with C-suite leaders across a range of sectors. 

The clear message that’s coming through is that the current economic situation, the recent UK budget and other external factors are forcing organisations to keep a focus on efficiency. And to improve efficiency, you need to know what’s happening in your business.

But many – even some of the largest enterprises – just don’t have that visibility.

“Gartner predicts that 40% of enterprise applications will embed task-specific AI agents during 2026, compared to less than 5% today.”

This is going to be a key focus in 2026, and here are some stats you might like to think about:

• In 2026, AI agents will move beyond simple automation to fully orchestrated workflows, where they analyse data and deliver insights without human intervention. Gartner predicts that 40% of enterprise applications will embed task-specific AI agents during 2026, compared to less than 5% today.
• Structured data is hitting its limits. In 2026, 80% to 90% of enterprise data – emails, documents and videos – will be leveraged for analytics, making unstructured data the key to deeper insights and smarter automation. 
• Insight platforms will need metadata-rich architectures and cloud-first designs to unlock this value, enabling richer, context-aware insights.
• Real-time insights will become standard, powered by edge computing and Internet of Things integration. This will reduce latency and enable instant decision making, particularly in sectors like manufacturing and healthcare.
• Platforms will need to support streaming analytics for dynamic dashboards and predictive alerts.

The organisations who will win in 2026 are those who adopt AI to strategically power insight, predictions and decision making. A focus on outcomes, ROI and vision will drive competitive advantage this year.

A gift for you in 2026

Forget the hype. Structurally designed AI solutions will drive focused efficiency in the areas you need it most. 

We’re offering a free, bespoke demo to show you exactly what this means for your business. Reach out, take that first step, and just book an initial call with us to get your gift: a free, bespoke demo that shows you the true possibilities.