Most firms are already using AI, but not many are seeing a return

While over three quarters of UK businesses are now using artificial intelligence tools, the vast majority are yet to see any return on their investments, according to a new poll from Studio Graphene.  The digital product studio commissioned Censuswide to survey 500 managers, directors and C-suite executives within UK businesses. It found that 78 percent of the businesses polled are using AI in some capacity – rising to 85 percent for mid-sized organisations (100-249 employees), the highest of any group.

A further 14 percent are exploring their options or plan to implement AI in 2026, with 8 percent not using artificial intelligence and having no plans to.  However, the research revealed that less than a third (31 percent) of the businesses using AI have seen a positive ROI from their investment in the technology. Almost a fifth (18 percent) said their projects have not delivered the benefits they expected, while 16 percent said it was too early to tell.

According to the survey, less than half (41 percent) of users have a clear idea of what ‘success’ looks like when implementing AI solutions. Among mid-size businesses, the leading adopters of the tech, there remains a minority (46 percent) that say they can define success.

Ritam Gandhi, director and founder of Studio Graphene, said: “Many organisations are at a critical point in their AI journey. Adoption has skyrocketed in the past year, particularly among mid-sized businesses, but our research clearly shows just how much progress is required for projects to be successful.

“There has been a rush to adopt amidst huge hype and a proliferation of new tools – this is certainly true of private equity-backed mid-sized companies looking to AI for automation, scalability and competitive edge. The problem, however, comes when AI is deployed without first defining where it sits within workflow, the decisions it’ll inform, the processes it’ll support, and the criteria for measuring success – often teams haven’t agreed whether AI is meant to save time, improve decision quality, reduce risk, support growth or all of the above.

“It’s a really important issue that threatens progress. Without defining these things, building a long-term business case for AI and realising its value will be difficult. At board level, frustration will grow without a clear picture of how and why AI is being used, and to what effect. It underlines the need for rigorous planning for any AI transformation project, not just in selecting the right tools, but in defining the broader strategy, implementation and criteria for success.”