A new survey by PwC reveals that many CEOs are expressing doubts about their companies’ ability to survive the next decade without significant overhauls, citing pressures from technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and climate change.
The survey, which includes responses from over 4,700 CEOs globally, paints a mixed picture of the business landscape.
While 38 percent of executives expressed optimism about the strength of the global economy, up from 18 percent the previous year, concerns about their companies’ viability in the next decade without reinvention rose to 45 percent, up from 39 percent in the last survey.
The CEOs identified challenges such as regulation, worker skills shortages, and other barriers hindering their adaptation to the evolving business landscape.
AI emerged as a pivotal factor, viewed as a tool to streamline business operations and a potential weakness. Nearly three-quarters of CEOs believed AI would significantly change how their companies create, deliver, and capture value in the next three years.
While over half anticipated improvements in their products or services due to AI, 69 percent expressed concerns about the need for worker training to utilize evolving technology effectively.
Additionally, executives voiced apprehensions about AI’s impact on cybersecurity risks and misinformation. This aligns with a broader concern raised at the Davos gathering regarding the threat posed by AI-powered misinformation, identified as one of the world’s greatest short-term threats.
The survey also highlighted the role of the climate transition, noting that nearly a third of CEOs expected climate change to influence their business strategies over the next three years.
However, only 45 percent reported progress in incorporating climate risks into financial planning, despite over three-quarters stating they had initiated or completed measures to enhance energy efficiency.
The findings underscore the complex landscape facing businesses. CEOs acknowledge the transformative potential of technologies like AI while grappling with the associated challenges, from workforce training needs to cybersecurity and the broader impacts of the climate transition.
