72% of companies use AI – but only 23% make it out of the pilot phase. To be on the winning side in 2026, here are our six predictions:

1. Governance becomes a C-level priority – No more siloed solutions and five parallel travel expense agents
2. Sovereignty becomes an architecture question – Where do you need data control, where is the US cloud enough?
3. Shadow AI forces you to lead – Your people are already using AI. Are you leading – or just watching?
4. AI becomes invisible – From chatbot to infrastructure working in the background
5. The job market transforms positively – More jobs, higher salaries, but reskilling is the bottleneck
6. Humanity becomes a superpower – Empathy as competitive advantage

New host alert: Starting this episode, Tobi – our new AI podcast host – takes over.

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