"Every December, roadmaps get locked, budgets get approved, and board decks are polished until everything looks precise and under control. Underneath, many CTOs and VPs are still working with partial visibility. They have a feel for their teams, but not a reliable view of how work moves through the system, how AI is really changing delivery, or where time and money actually go."
"For a while, that was survivable. Experience, pattern recognition, and cheap capital covered the gaps. You could hire around bottlenecks, overstaff critical teams, or quietly pivot away from the messiest parts of the system. Then AI showed up and became the perfect distraction. Pilots, PoCs, Copilot seats, and "AI initiatives" created visible activity and bought time. In 2026, that grace period ends. Boards and CFOs are shifting from " show me you are experimenting" to " show me measurable impact, this year. ""
Many engineering leaders present polished roadmaps while operating with partial visibility into how work flows, where time and money go, and how AI affects delivery. Historical remedies—experience, pattern recognition, and cheap capital—masked inefficiencies via hiring, overstaffing, or pivoting away from systemic problems. AI adoption produced visible activity through pilots, PoCs, and tool rollouts that often obscured true impact. By 2026 boards and CFOs will require measurable, traceable outcomes within the year rather than experimentation. Every AI dollar will need a clear path to productivity gains, improved quality, or customer value, requiring mapping usage, quantifying freed capacity, and showing redirected outcomes.
Read at TNW | Deep-Tech
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