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Egon Zehnder survey puts AI at top of CEOs’ reported challenges

In the firm’s 2026 study of 843 chief executives, 48% called AI adoption and impact an extremely critical challenge, up from 37% in 2025.

Newsverum · Source brief1 min read

Event / data period: 2026-10-21

Published: · Updated:

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Egon Zehnder said on 21 October that its third annual CEO Response study covered 843 chief executives worldwide. In the survey, 48% described the adoption and impact of AI as an extremely critical challenge, compared with 37% in the 2025 study.

The survey also found that 50% placed AI investment among the three most important changes they were making, while 44% cited geopolitical instability and 40% economic uncertainty as extremely critical challenges. These figures describe respondents’ views in the firm’s study; they are not an objective ranking of risks across all companies.

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Egon Zehnder survey puts AI at top of CEOs’ reported challenges

  1. · Occurred

    Egon Zehnder survey puts AI at top of CEOs’ reported challenges

    Egon Zehnder said on 21 October that its third annual CEO Response study covered 843 chief executives worldwide. In the survey, 48% described the adoption and impact of AI as an extremely critical challenge, compared with 37% in the 2025 study.

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Based on the source announcement; no outcomes beyond those stated are asserted.

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Key figures

CEO Response survey findings

These figures report participant responses in Egon Zehnder’s 2025 and 2026 CEO Response studies and the 2026 sample size; they are not an objective ranking of risks for all companies.

CEOs included in the study
843 people
2026 · Observed
Respondents rating AI an extremely critical challenge
48 percent
2026 · Observed
Respondents rating AI an extremely critical challenge
37 percent
2025 · Observed
Respondents rating geopolitical instability an extremely critical challenge
44 percent
2026 · Observed
Respondents rating economic uncertainty an extremely critical challenge
40 percent
2026 · Observed
Methodology

Respondent counts and response percentages reported in the CEO Response study. The 2026 sample contains 843 CEOs; the 2025 percentage comes from the separate annual study. This is not a census of global companies or an objective risk measure.

Updated:

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Taxonomy version: IPTC Media Topics 2026-Q2

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