State of Manufacturing INDUSTRY
2026
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State of Manufacturing INDUSTRY
2026
Generative AI
Key Insight N°2
Ubiquitous Experimentation,
Structured Scale Still Emerging
All manufacturers surveyed have either adopted GenAI
or are in the planning/discovery phase
100%
Have begun adoption across some
or all departments (up from 48% in 2024)
65%
interpretation
interpretation
GenAI is entering organizations through
low-risk, non-operational workflows.
Common use cases include:
• Documentation
• Knowledge retrieval
• Analysis support
• Documentation
• Knowledge retrieval
• Analysis support
To what extent has your organization adopted GenAI technologies?
Most (65%) have adopted GenAI across at least some departments, including 24% with extensive implementation across departments.
Sample Size
= 1,200
= 1,200
insight
insight
Generative AI is the fastest adoption vector, but not yet the most operationally impactful.
Emerging
Pattern
Pattern
Emerging
Pattern
Pattern
• High executive interest
• Mixed workforce perception
• Unclear long-term operational role
• Mixed workforce perception
• Unclear long-term operational role
Sentiment Toward AI
Which best captures the attitude your company’s senior leaders tend to have toward emerging AI technologies?
While a quarter of IT Leaders and Executive Stakeholders (25%) indicate their company’s senior leaders are enthusiastic and eager to adopt emerging AI tech early, close to two-fifths instead believe their leaders have a cautious or even resistant attitude toward this technology.
Among IT Leaders and Executive Stakeholders; Sample Size = 800
Enthusiastic
25%
Cautious or resistant
39%
Other employees:
Receptive
72%
Resistant
27%
How receptive are employees at your company to adopting emerging AI technologies?
Most (72%) feel employees at their company are generally receptive toward emerging AI technologies, though just 19% describe their employees as highly receptive.
Sample Size
= 1,200
= 1,200
Interpretation
Contrary to common assumptions, workforce resistance is not the primary constraint to AI adoption.
Interpretation
Insight
The limiting factors are governance clarity and strategic direction—
not cultural acceptance.
Insight
