More than half of Canadian organizations plan to invest in agentic AI

Agentic AI a top investment opportunity

Agentic AI is already making its way into the workplace, with just over a quarter of survey respondents saying they’ve already rolled out the technology within their organization. Nearly two-thirds are in the early stages, whether that’s exploring potential uses, running experiments or launching pilot projects. Looking ahead, 34% of those surveyed plan to adopt agentic AI within the next year.

While almost three-quarters said they’re "very familiar" with what agentic AI is, only about two-thirds felt the same confidence when it came to understanding how it could actually be applied in their own industry or workplace.

“There’s still a knowledge gap between what business leaders know about agentic AI and how they can use it to their advantage,” said Terrill. “Awareness, education and hands-on experience will be key to closing that gap.”

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Putting agentic AI to work

When it comes to putting agentic AI to work, organizations are eyeing improvements in key areas like customer service, cybersecurity, compliance and regulatory management, communications and accounting.

The most anticipated benefits include quicker, more accurate access to information, stronger decision-making capabilities and a boost in productivity. But there are hurdles, too. Cybersecurity and privacy concerns, data quality issues and the cost of deployment top the list of challenges businesses expect to face.

Most organizations believe the technology will have a clear impact on the bottom line. A majority expect agentic AI to increase profitability by five to 15%, and more than half predict it will help reduce operating costs by a similar margin.

Still, not all outcomes are positive. Eight in 10 expect the technology will lead to a reduction in headcount, and nearly three-quarters say there’s real concern among staff that agentic AI could replace them, or entire teams.

Survey methodology

KPMG in Canada surveyed 252 Canadian businesses from Feburary 28 to March 5, using Sago's premier research panel. Seventy-two percent of respondents identified as business owners and 28% are senior level decision makers. Sixteen percent of respondents are in banking and capital markets; 15% in industrial manufacturing; 15% in technology, media and telecommunications; 12% in consumer, retail and leisure; remaining respondents are spread out across other industries.

As well, 22% of respondents' organizations reported annual revenues of $50 to $99.9 million; 19% reported between $100 million and $299.9 million; 10% between $300 million and $499.9 million; 13% between $500 million and $699.9 million; 10% between $700 million and $899.9 million; 12% between $900 million and $1 billion; and 14% reported annual revenues over $1 billion.