Research Teams Not Using AI Are Four Times More Likely to Lose Organizational Influence

Why It Matters

The gap signals a rapidly widening competitive advantage for AI‑enabled research functions, pressuring firms to accelerate AI adoption and align leadership with frontline teams to avoid wasted spend and loss of market insight speed.

Summary

Qualtrics’ 2026 Market Research Trends report finds that research teams that adopt purpose‑built AI tools—such as synthetic data generators, conversational analytics, and agentic AI—are four times more likely to retain organizational influence and capture larger budgets than teams relying on generic AI or basic functionalities. Seventy‑two percent of AI‑first teams say their research is now a critical organizational asset, while 37% of traditional teams report flat or declining demand. Adoption of specialized AI has risen, with 49% of teams using conversational analytics and visual content analysis, and 15% already deploying AI agents; 78% expect agents to run over half of projects by 2028. However, a leadership‑frontline misalignment persists, with only 19% of individual contributors believing AI has revolutionized processes versus 39% of leaders, risking under‑utilization of investments.