Companies in the GCC countries have strong ambitions for artificial intelligence (AI), but now they need to turn pilot projects into measurable performance, says Korn Ferry
More than nine out of 10 companies in the GCC – 93 per cent – are already exploring, piloting or deploying artificial intelligence (AI) across different functions, according to a new study released on Thursday.
According to the “AI Adoption in Human Capital: GCC Report 2026” released by Korn Ferry, nearly half of the organisations surveyed — 49 per cent — are actively piloting AI solutions, signalling growing momentum towards full-scale deployment.
“The GCC has no shortage of AI ambition. What it needs now is the organisational architecture to turn pilots into performance,” said Jonathan Holmes, managing director for the Middle East, Turkey and Africa at Korn Ferry.
Nearly half – 49 per cent – of companies in the GCC are actively piloting artificial intelligence (AI) across different functions as momentum builds towards full-scale deployment, according to a new study released on Thursday.
The survey found that 81 per cent of GCC business leaders cite productivity gains as their primary AI objective, signalling that AI has moved beyond a technology discussion to become a core business performance priority.
When asked about the biggest barriers to achieving return on investment (RoI), executives pointed to technology integration challenges (61 per cent). However, talent gaps (44 per cent) and unclear RoI frameworks (37 per cent) also emerged as key obstacles, highlighting the need for organisations to build the people, skills, and measurement infrastructure required to convert AI investments into measurable business outcomes.
The study noted that organisations addressing all three challenges simultaneously are already gaining a competitive advantage.
The report by Korn Ferry is based on fieldwork conducted during the first quarter of 2026 across 105 organisations in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait.
The surveyed organisations ranged from companies with 500 employees to enterprises with more than 10,000 workers across sectors including technology, energy and utilities, financial services, government, oil and gas, retail and FMCG, and industrial manufacturing.
Vijay Gandhi, regional director at Korn Ferry Digital EMEA, said today’s chief human resources officers (CHROs) are no longer limited to shaping the talent agenda, but are increasingly helping define the overall strategic direction of organisations, influencing decisions that impact everything from corporate culture to the bottom line.
How many organisations are AI-ready?
There is a clear gap between the level of AI ambition expressed by GCC firms and their current workforce readiness.
Only 1 per cent of firms consider themselves fully AI-ready, while 30 per cent say they are not ready at all. The majority — 46 per cent — describe themselves as only somewhat ready, highlighting a significant readiness gap despite strong AI adoption momentum across the region.
When it comes to hiring AI-related roles, 42 per cent of respondents are not hiring for AI roles at all.
Among those who are hiring, senior specialists dominate (43 per cent of hiring responses), followed by mid-level roles (33 per cent), while entry-level positions account for only 15 per cent. The near-absence of entry-level hiring signals a talent structure that is currently top-heavy and could become unsustainable in the long term.
