Survey2026-07-22
A survey of 300 US business executives by security firm WitnessAI found that most companies had at least some artificial intelligence projects run over budget in the past year, and very few could show a measurable financial return. The report points to unmanaged staff use of AI tools outside official channels as a driver of the overruns, with IT departments the largest single source. The findings come from a vendor that sells AI governance software.
What changed
Enterprise AI budgets were often set without visibility into unmanaged usage or a way to measure returns.
What it unlocks
Benchmarking an organisation's own AI budget overruns and return measurement against reported peer figures.
- 68% of US firms had at least some AI projects run over budget
- 33% said overruns happened mostly or always
- only 9% said more than three-quarters of AI projects delivered measurable financial return
- survey of 300 business executives
- 47% of shadow AI activity came from IT and infrastructure
- 87% of finance leaders feel pressure to link AI spend to outcomes; 22% have done so
Sources