The pressure is on for companies to turn AI investment into impact, according to PwC’s 2024 Global Investor Survey.
73% of investors say companies should deploy AI solutions at scale, as overwhelmingly 66% expect the companies they invest in to deliver productivity increases from AI over the next 12 months, with 63% expecting revenue increases and 62% expecting it to increase profitability.
The survey, which captures the views of 345 investors and analysts across 24 countries and territories, finds that investors see technological change as the most significant driver of change for the businesses they invest in (71%), ahead of government regulation (64%), changes in customer preference (61%), and supply chain instability (60%).
Notably, investors are also not seeing a trade-off between AI and workers. 74% of respondents urge the businesses they invest in or cover to invest in upskilling their workforce. 32% expect AI to lead to headcount increases of 5% or more – on par with the proportion who expect little to no change in headcount (31%).
Wes Bricker, Global Assurance Leader, PwC US, said: “Investors expect to see real outcomes from GenAI over the next year and recognize that achieving this will take investment in people and upskilling, as well as technology.
Management can expect scrutiny on how they deliver AI productivity gains and support for an approach that extends beyond the tech itself to reinvent the way businesses operate.”
The survey finds that investors are cautiously optimistic about the global economy – half (51%) expect the economy to grow over the next 12 months, with macroeconomic and inflationary concerns falling from their 2022 highs (respectively, from 62% to 34% in 2024, and 67% to 31%).
At the same time, investors’ greatest concerns are cyber risks (36%) and geopolitical conflict (36%), both of which are largely unchanged over the last two years but have slightly risen from 2023.
With these risks remaining top of mind for investors, almost nine in ten (86%) agree that the ability of a company to manage through a crisis is an important factor in their investment decision-making. 60% of investors believe it is also very or extremely important that companies re-think their business models in response to supply chain instability – and 68% say they should increase their investment to de-risk them.
Investors eye action on the impact of climate
Investors continue to prioritize action on the impact of climate. 30% expect that the companies they invest in will be highly or extremely exposed to threats from climate change within the next 12 months, up eight points from 2022, although down two points from 2023.
75% of survey respondents agreed that they would moderately or significantly increase their investment in companies that are taking a range of climate-related actions, with the greatest support for taking action to build sustainable supply chains by working with suppliers and communities (80%). When assessing companies’ net-zero transition plans investors say governance (72%) and associated capital or operating expenditures (68%) are very or extremely important. Additionally, 71% say companies should incorporate ESG/sustainability directly into their corporate strategies – a similar level to 2023.
However, challenges remain – 44% of those surveyed agreed that to a large or very large extent, corporate reporting about a company’s sustainability performance contains unsupported claims – marking little change over the past two years. Not surprisingly, 73% are demanding a level of detail in assurance reports on sustainability information that is comparable to that of financial audits.
Nadja Picard, Global Reporting Leader, PwC Germany, said: “Investors continue to prioritize action on the impact of climate. They are increasingly interested in the governance and financial impact and commitment of companies’ net-zero transition plans. Companies should embed sustainability in their strategies, particularly as investors continue to look at sustainability-related disclosures and communication to assess action.”
