Looking Ahead to 2026 Through a Tech CEO’s Lens

As we look ahead to 2026, how do you see the business and technology landscape evolving after two challenging years?

After two years of adjustment and caution, 2026 marks a new phase for the tech industry, as companies begin moving forward again. There is more confidence, but decisions are more careful.

From what we see in IT, budgets are opening again, but expectations are clearer than before. Companies want to understand why they are investing and what business impact to expect. According to Gartner, global IT spending is expected to exceed $6 trillion in 2026, up nearly 10 % from approximately $5.5 trillion in 2025, which shows that investment is increasing in a more controlled and realistic way.

AI continues to dominate conversations. How do you expect its role to evolve in 2026 compared to previous years?

AI will remain central in 2026, but the focus is shifting. Until now, many companies mainly explored AI through tools, experiments and pilots. Next year, the expectation is that AI starts delivering real, visible results.

When we talk about better outcomes, we mean very concrete things: higher productivity, faster processes, better use of data and clearer decision-making. Teams are expected to achieve more with the same resources by using AI effectively. AI is no longer treated as a separate initiative. It is becoming part of everyday systems and tools people already use at work.

Despite economic uncertainty, companies continue to increase AI spending. What do you expect AI investment to look like in the year ahead?

AI spending will continue to grow in 2026, but with much stronger expectations. UBS estimates that global AI investment will exceed half a trillion dollars next year, and many CEOs plan to increase their AI budgets.

What is different now is the mindset. AI is no longer seen as hype or a trend, or as something experimental. It is treated like core business infrastructure. That means leaders are asking very practical questions: does this save time, improve performance or support growth. If the answer is unclear, the investment usually does not move forward.

Agentic commerce and AI-driven decision-making are gaining momentum. What role will they play in 2026?

In 2026, agentic commerce will start appearing in real, practical use cases. With infrastructure players like Visa introducing protocols that enable secure agent-initiated transactions, AI agents can begin to act on behalf of users in limited, well defined scenarios.

This can include actions such as booking flights, reserving hotels, renewing subscriptions or completing purchases within clearly defined limits and user-approved preferences. The goal is not to replace people, but to remove unnecessary steps and make common transactions faster and simpler, while users remain in control.

How will this change the way customers search, decide and buy?

Customers will spend less time manually navigating apps and websites. Instead, they will focus on what they want to achieve, such as booking a trip or buying a product, and systems will handle the steps required to get there.

For companies, this means building systems that AI agents and customers can interact with easily, from accessing information to completing transactions. Brands will still matter, but if the experience is slow, confusing or inconsistent, customers will simply choose an easier option.

Beyond AI, which digital or organisational trends will shape how companies operate in 2026?

One important shift is a stronger focus on foundations. Companies are paying more attention to platforms, data, integrations and system reliability, not just user-facing features.

Another important change is ownership. Digital decisions are increasingly made by leadership teams, not only IT. Technology is now directly tied to business goals, which means leaders are far more involved in setting priorities, measuring business results and deciding where to invest.

How should companies rethink their digital strategies in light of these changes?

Digital strategy needs to start with real business needs, not with technology trends. The key question is not “What can we build?” but “What problem are we solving?”

In practice, this often means fixing core systems first, including cleaning and organising data, before adding new layers. Companies that focus on solid platforms and clean integrations are in a much better position to use AI, automation and new models later on.

How is Saint D positioning itself to support clients in this new environment?

At Saint D, we work as long-term partners, guiding clients from vision to execution and building systems that deliver real business value.

We work across platforms, integrations, web, mobile and AI, especially in industries like banking, fintech and healthcare, where reliability and compliance are essential. Having worked with machine learning and AI for almost a decade helps us guide clients from early ideas to practical implementation.

What kinds of projects do you expect to define your work in 2026?

We expect continued work on core platforms, web and mobile systems, with more focus on automation and AI features built into existing products.

Many clients are not looking for completely new products, but for smarter ways to improve what they already have. Most of this work is ongoing, not one-off, because systems need to evolve continuously.

Which industries do you see driving demand for digital and AI-enabled solutions next year?

Financial services will remain a strong driver, especially banking, fintech and payments, due to efficiency, regulation and customer expectations. We also see growing demand in commerce, logistics and service-based businesses that rely heavily on operational efficiency.

At the same time, mid-sized companies are becoming more active. They are not chasing large AI platforms, but practical solutions that help teams work faster and more efficiently.