In a recent survey of more than 1,200 global companies, 82% of respondents reported a positive impact on their organizations as AI adoption accelerates.
Global insurance brokerage firm Gallagher recently announced its third annual AI Adoption and Risk Survey. They found that companies are increasingly integrating AI into their operations with a focus on IT operations, customer-facing functions, and analytics, with 63% of companies fully operating or implementing AI in some part of their business, up from 45% in 2025.
The majority of respondents (83%) believe that AI will drive future revenue growth, and 93% reported being confident in their understanding of AI risks and rated their knowledge as “fairly good” or “very good.”
While the benefits of AI seem clear, the study found that many challenges remain.
More than half of respondents reported skills gaps and recruitment challenges, and 46% appointed an AI ethics officer to help balance technology and ethical considerations.
Many companies are developing job protection strategies with a people-first approach. However, 59% of respondents reported that they had cut their positions or planned to cut their positions in the future.
Respondents in South Korea were more likely to say their company had reduced headcount through downsizing, followed by India. Additionally, in Australia, 53% of businesses reported a reduction in headcount by not retrenching or rehiring.
The impact of AI adoption on workforce numbers appears to be most pronounced in communications, technology, energy, and financial services.
Gallagher added that reskilling and upskilling can help with the transition, noting that this could help manage the eroding trust of employees.
Almost two-thirds (63%) of organizations are actively measuring ROI, and while many are seeing productivity gains, they estimate it takes an average of 28 months to realize a return on their AI investments.
AI errors, misinformation and illusions remain a key concern, topping the list of perceived threats from AI deployments (57%), as do legal and reputational risks from misuse of AI (56%) and breaches of data protection and privacy (55%).
According to research, the most perceived risks of using AI in business are:
- AI errors, misinformation, and hallucinations
- Legal and reputational risks
- Privacy and data breaches
- Risk of cyber attacks and fraud
- Overdependence and decline in human judgment
- Employment insecurity and industrial action
- Ethical risks and weak governance
- Decline in employee engagement and change fatigue
- Algorithmic bias and discrimination
- Shareholder behavior regarding low ROI
- Decreasing trust in leadership
Insurance experts also participated in this year’s survey. One in five customers say they have experienced a loss or claim due to an AI-related risk in the past year, and just over half of these were covered by insurance.
The types of businesses most likely to be affected by AI-related claims are cyber liability, product liability, and employer/employment practices liability.
Insurance experts say current coverage language is too vague for AI losses.
“Insurers are considering including clearer language around AI risks across different policies to better understand the total cost of risk. However, language can be difficult given that AI is constantly evolving,” said Paige Cheeseley, Canada National Technology Practice Leader at Gallagher.
The risks associated with the use of AI have led to dedicated AI insurance solutions, recommendations, bespoke add-ons and, in some cases, exclusions, the report said.
Similar to how cyber insurance has evolved, the industry as a whole is expected to adopt a wait-and-see approach, using the onslaught of claims to shape future policies.
Gallagher’s experts said that ultimately the onus is on companies to ensure a multi-departmental approach to overseeing the use and governance of AI.
The study also revealed the importance of involving HR early to address employee concerns while maintaining human elements such as personal accountability, governance, and training.
Steve Lee, global chief digital officer at Gallagher, says customer experience should always be the top priority, and suggests mapping the entire customer journey.
“This research complements what we’ve seen with our customers. At Gallagher, our AI journey is about more than just implementing cutting-edge technology; it’s about empowering our employees and putting our customers’ needs front and center,” Lee said. “Over the past few years, we have continued to invest in developing the skills of our data, analytics and digital workforce to ensure our teams are equipped to deliver the best results and solutions for our clients in a rapidly evolving landscape.”
