McKinsey AI Survey 2025: 88% Use AI, Few Scale for Impact
88% of organizations use AI in at least one function (up from 78%), but 2/3 remain in pilots; high performers (6%) redesign workflows, target growth/innovation, and scale agents 3x faster to drive EBIT impact.
Widespread AI Adoption Hits Pilots Ceiling
Nearly 88% of respondents report AI use in at least one business function, up from 78% last year, with two-thirds now using it in 3+ functions—IT, marketing/sales, and knowledge management lead. Common use cases include information capture/processing via conversational interfaces, marketing content support, and customer service automation. AI agents, which plan/execute multi-step workflows on foundation models, see 62% experimentation (23% scaling, mostly in 1-2 functions like IT service desks or research). Tech, media/telecom, and healthcare sectors report highest agent use (up to 10% scaling per function). Larger firms ($5B+ revenue) scale 1.7x more than small ones (<$100M), but overall, 2/3 of orgs stay in experimentation/piloting, blocking enterprise value.
Cost savings emerge in software engineering, manufacturing, and IT use cases; revenue lifts in marketing/sales, strategy/finance, and product development. Yet enterprise EBIT impact lags: only 39% attribute any to AI (mostly <5%), despite 64% citing innovation gains, 48% customer satisfaction boosts, and 46% competitive edge.
High Performers Drive Transformative Value
AI high performers—6% of respondents with ≥5% EBIT impact and 'significant' value—prioritize growth/innovation alongside efficiency (80% of all set efficiency goals, but high performers add these for 3x transformative ambition). They use AI across more functions (e.g., marketing/sales, strategy), scale agents 3x faster, and secure C-suite buy-in (3x more likely to see leaders own/commit). Result: superior outcomes in profitability, revenue growth, market share.
Workflow Redesign Unlocks Impact, Amid Mixed Workforce Views
Fundamentally redesigning workflows correlates strongest with high performance (high performers 3x more likely), enabling business transformation over mere augmentation. Risks mitigation rises (e.g., more common now), but workforce expectations split: 32% predict headcount drops, 43% no change, 13% growth next year. To replicate high performers, pair bold goals with workflow overhauls and leadership role-modeling—pilots alone yield use-case wins but not enterprise scale.