KPMG’s Global Tech Report 2026 reveals that organisations worldwide are moving beyond pilots and seeking to embed AI into core workflows and offerings, striving to scale investments. The new report identifies that while expectations are high and adoption is rapid; scaling can introduce additional complexity and returns vary widely.

• 68 percent of organisations surveyed aim to reach the highest level of AI maturity by the end of 2026, yet only 24 percent are there today.
• 88 percent are investing in building agentic AI into their systems.
• 74 percent say their AI use cases are delivering business value, but only 24 percent achieve ROI across multiple use cases.
• 90 percent plan to grow partnerships and tech ecosystems over the next year, yet 53 percent still lack the talent needed to bring their digital transformation plans to life.
• 78 percent agree they must take more risks on emerging technologies to stay relevant.

The report asks: Can ambition match reality, and can organisations keep one eye on the next wave of innovation while delivering on today’s agenda?

“The future belongs to leaders who turn intelligence into advantage. Our research shows organisations are pushing past the early phase of ‘AI roulette’, placing scattered bets on multiple technologies, and are now increasingly focused on delivering value. When ambition meets disciplined execution, value compounds.

“Our 2026 Global Tech Report provides a synopsis of the critical things that high performers are doing better than most; a checklist for tech leaders looking to improve their organisational performance, emulate the high performers, and deliver higher ROI”. – Guy Holland, Global Leader, CIO Center of Excellence, KPMG International

”As Africa enters the Intelligence Age, the differentiator is no longer access to technology, but the ability to build the skills, governance, and operating models required to scale it responsibly. While organisations are accelerating AI adoption to drive productivity and growth, the real determinant of value lies in workforce readiness, executive alignment, and disciplined execution.

Those that invest early in digital skills, human-AI collaboration, and adaptive leadership will be best positioned to translate innovation into sustainable commercial and economic impact.” – Marshal Luusa, Partner: Technology & Innovation Lead, KPMG One Africa

 Key findings from the report

Tech maturity accelerates: Leaders set their sights on the top

Half (50 percent) of global tech leaders surveyed expect to reach the highest level of technology maturity in 2026, compared to only 11 percent today. This surge in optimism is fuelled by a move from isolated experiments to integrating AI and advanced technologies into core systems and scaling their impact.

High performers, those organisations leading in technology maturity, process maturity and value, are already reaping the rewards, reporting an average ROI of 4.5x, more than double the industry average of 2x. These leading organisations have progressed beyond pilot programs, prioritising the scaling of innovation and continually adapting to maintain a competitive edge in a fast-evolving environment.

Other organisations reporting higher ROI include smaller firms (3.6x), those with fewer cost pressures (2.6x), and transformation‑focused organisations (3.2x). The ROI pattern is equally nuanced: rather than a single investment ‘sweet spot’, clear ROI ‘zones’ emerge, from early quick wins to accelerating, enterprise‑wide value as maturity increases.

The age of agentic: AI adoption surges but innovation drives real business value

AI is now seen as a strategic necessity, not just industry hype. Sixty-eight percent of respondents are aiming for the highest level of AI maturity in their organisations. Eighty-eight percent of companies are already investing in agentic AI – autonomous digital agents transforming operations and decision-making. Seventy-four percent of respondents report that their AI initiatives are creating measurable business value, such as improved efficiency and reduced risk.

However, only 24 percent say they are scaling AI and achieving ROI across multiple use cases. This highlights the need for organisations to evolve KPIs beyond traditional financial and productivity metrics and build enterprise-wide alignment to fully realise AI’s potential.

The shift from AI experimentation to large-scale deployment is underway, with leaders working to embed AI into products, services, and value delivery.

Talent and agility power success: Human potential remains central

Human expertise remains central to digital transformation initiatives. Organisations are making significant investments in upskilling their workforce, building adaptive teams, and fostering cultures that embrace change.

Despite the rapid adoption of agentic AI, organisations still expect 42 percent of their tech workforce to remain permanent human staff by 2027 – only a five‑point drop from 2025.

High-performing companies plan to retain even more permanent human talent, with 50 percent remaining in place by 2027, revealing the continued importance of human expertise alongside AI. Despite these efforts, 53 percent of organisations report they still lack the talent needed to realise their digital transformation strategies.

Ninety-two percent of organisations surveyed anticipate that managing AI agents will become a critical skill within five years. The most successful organisations prioritise both technological advancements and people, empowering employees to innovate and adapt.

Strategic partnerships fuel growth: Ecosystems expand for the future

To overcome challenges and accelerate learning, 90 percent of organisations plan to grow partnerships and tech ecosystems over the next year. Strategic alliances are enabling access to specialised expertise, rapid innovation, and shared best practices.

As agentic AI and other advanced technologies become mainstream, organisations recognise the importance of building robust ecosystems that foster co-creation and continuous improvement. Nearly one-third of tech executives are planning to increase investment in centers of excellence, supporting cross-functional teams and controlled experimentation.

Preparing for tomorrow’s breakthroughs: Leaders embrace bold risks

The future is arriving fast, with quantum computing and Artificial Superintelligence (ASI) on the horizon. Leaders are already preparing for these breakthroughs, with 78 percent of organisations agreeing they must take more risks on emerging technologies to stay relevant.

The report urges organisations to maintain strategic foresight, invest in ethical frameworks, and build resilient, future-ready workforces. By balancing ambition with rational thinking and disciplined execution, tech executives are positioning their organisations to turn disruption into durable, compounding value.

In its Kaspersky Security Bulletin, the cybersecurity company’s researchers identified critical threats expected to affect the global entertainment industry in 2026, from ticketing and visual effects pipelines to content delivery networks, games and regulation.

Artificial intelligence is changing how people buy tickets, watch movies and play games – and it is also changing how malicious actors target those experiences.

The entertainment industry is particularly sensitive to AI because the technology does not only automate back-office workflows; it increasingly creates and imitates the core product itself – human-centered stories, performances and visual experiences.

Kaspersky researchers highlighted five critical threats emerging as AI integrates deeper into entertainment workflows and consumer experiences.

What happens when ticket markets become an arms race between algorithms and scalpers? Kaspersky predicts that AI will make dynamic pricing faster and more granular, while also giving scalpers better tools to identify profitable events, deploy bots at scale and manage resale pricing across multiple platforms.

Even when artists choose fixed face values, AI-driven resellers can recreate “dynamic” pricing on secondary markets by adjusting prices in real time based on demand signals.

How will AI-commodified visual effects affect the risk of leaks? As high-end computer-generated imagery becomes more accessible through cloud-based AI platforms, studios will connect to larger networks of small vendors and freelancers.

Kaspersky expects attackers to target this extended supply chain by compromising render farms, plug-ins or small post-production houses in order to quietly steal sequences, assets or episodes before release, bypassing more heavily protected studio environments.

Could content delivery networks become a direct target? CDNs now carry unreleased episodes, game builds and live streams for many major entertainment brands, concentrating valuable content in a small number of providers.

AI-enhanced attackers will be able to map CDN infrastructure more efficiently, locate where premium content resides and search for weak credentials or configuration errors. A single successful compromise could expose multiple titles at once or allow malicious code to be injected into legitimate streams.

How will generative tools change abuse patterns in games and fan communities? Players and power users will continue to jailbreak in-game AI companions and content editors, and to use external generative models to produce material that would normally be blocked – such as hyper-violent or sexualized scenarios – and then reimport it into games, mods, or fan videos.

There is also a risk of personal data appearing in “creative” outputs if training or fine-tuning data is not properly cleaned, for example, when lyrics, dialogue, or imagery inadvertently include real names or other identifying details.

What role will regulation and compliance play for AI in creative work? Lawmakers and industry groups are moving toward rules that require transparency about AI-generated media and clearer consent and licensing practices for training on copyrighted material.

Kaspersky expects this to drive the creation of new roles inside entertainment companies, similar to COVID-compliance managers on film sets, focused on AI governance: checking how AI tools are trained, how they are used in production and marketing, and whether they comply with contractual and legal requirements.

“As we examined different parts of the industry, it became clear that AI is the thread running through most of the emerging risks.

“By diving into this, we wanted to highlight that AI will not only help defenders detect anomalies faster, it will also help attackers model markets, probe infrastructure and generate convincing malicious content.

“Studios, platforms and rights holders need to treat AI systems, and the data behind them, as part of their core attack surface, not just as creative tools, and build security and governance around that reality,” said Anna Larkina, web content analysis expert at Kaspersky.

The Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) is looking into offline payment solutions as part of its efforts to increase financial inclusion and reach Nigerians who have limited or no access to mobile data.

The project was announced by Ngover Nwankwo, NIBSS executive director for business and products, at the 2026 CHBO Conference in Lagos.

Nwankwo pointed out that the rapid expansion of digital payments must be matched by purposeful inclusion initiatives, cautioning that innovation should not exclude groups of the population that still rely largely on cash.

She emphasised that cash is still an important element of Nigeria’s economy and that digital and cash-based payments must coexist to safeguard disadvantaged users while boosting efficiency for digitally connected customers.

Nwanko also commended banks for operational performance, particularly during the December 2025 cash demand period, which she said was met with few public complaints.

Lloyd Onaghinon, Bankers Warehouse Plc,had similar sentiments on the enduring need of cash. He explained that cash usage remained high globally due to cultural, demographic, and trust-related factors

However, he cautioned that surplus currency outside the banking system undermines financial intermediation and monetary policy efficacy, demanding greater cooperation among regulators, banks, and other stakeholders.

Director Solaja Olayemi, representing the Central Bank of Nigeria, stated that around 90% of Nigeria’s cash remained outside the banking system and encouraged banks to collaborate with fintechs and microfinance institutions..

He added that fintechs with substantial agent networks, such as Moniepoint, OPay, and Kuda, are better positioned to drive inclusion, with some companies now holding national licenses.