According to PwC’s 2026 AI business predictions, tech innovation continues to be a driver of business strategy, operations, workforce design and even sustainability. As the report notes, “success is becoming visible,” with companies embedding AI deeply across workflows, governance and culture.
Researchers say HR leaders in small and medium-sized businesses can take advantage of emerging innovations much like large enterprises do. In many ways, smaller companies may be better positioned to act.
Upwork research shows that confidence among SMB leaders rose and fell more sharply than it did for leaders of larger organizations, dropping from 59% in the first quarter to 47% in the second, then climbing back to 58% in the third. Their willingness to experiment with talent and technology followed a similar trend, signaling a readiness to adjust quickly when conditions shift.
However, to adjust in 2026, they may need a practical framework. PwC emphasizes that many organizations fail when they treat AI as a collection of scattered grassroots projects. “Crowdsourcing AI efforts can create impressive adoption numbers, but it seldom produces meaningful business outcomes,” the report states.
Find high-impact pain points
Senior leadership must identify high-impact workflows where data, talent and business priorities align, and then invest
