PwC's 29th Global CEO Survey
Leading Through Uncertainty in the Age of AI
Executive Summary
PwC surveyed 4,454 CEOs across 95 countries and territories between September-November 2025, revealing a business landscape marked by declining confidence, rising threats, yet continued investment in transformation and AI.
Key Findings
Confidence Decline
Only 30% of CEOs are very or extremely confident about revenue growth over the next 12 months, down from 38% last year and 56% in 2022. This marks a significant shift as leaders face macroeconomic volatility, cyber risks, and geopolitical uncertainty.
AI Adoption Challenges
Most companies haven't realized financial returns from AI investments yet. While 30% report increased revenue and 26% report cost savings, more than half (56%) have seen neither benefit. Only 12% of CEOs report achieving both higher revenues and lower costs from AI. Enterprise-scale deployment remains limited.
Industry Reconfiguration
42% of CEOs say their companies have started competing in new sectors in the last five years. Among those planning major acquisitions, 44% expect to do deals outside their existing sector. Companies generating higher revenue from new sectors show stronger profit margins and growth confidence.
Rising Threats
CEOs are increasingly concerned about near-term risks. Cyber risk exposure jumped to 31% (up from 24% last year), now ranking alongside macroeconomic volatility as the top threat. Almost a third (29%) expect tariffs to reduce profit margins, though most anticipate only slight declines.
Innovation Gap
While half of CEOs say innovation is central to their strategy, fewer than one in ten have implemented at least five of six key innovation practices. Only about a quarter have defined innovation centres, processes to stop underperforming projects, or tolerance for high-risk initiatives.
Climate Integration Lagging
42% of CEOs acknowledge moderate-to-high exposure to climate-related financial losses, yet only 20-24% have defined processes for integrating climate considerations into capital allocation, supply chain, and product development decisions.
Trust and Value
Two-thirds of CEOs (66%) experienced stakeholder trust concerns in the past year on issues like AI safety, data privacy, and climate transparency. Public companies with the fewest trust concerns delivered total shareholder returns nine percentage points higher than those with the most concerns.
Time Allocation
CEOs spend nearly half their time (47%) on issues with horizons under one year—three times more than the 16% dedicated to activities beyond five years. This imbalance raises questions about strategic focus during a period requiring long-term reinvention.
Investment Destinations
The United States remains the top destination for international investment (35% of CEOs), with India jumping to 13% (from 7% last year). UAE and Saudi Arabia entered the top ten, reflecting Middle East economic diversification.
Performance Patterns
The survey reveals clear performance differences. Companies moving aggressively on reinvention deploying AI at scale, implementing innovation practices, competing across sectors are outperforming more cautious peers. Cautious companies show revenue growth two percentage points lower and profit margins three percentage points lower than dynamic competitors.
Conclusion
CEOs face a critical challenge: balancing immediate threats against long-term transformation needs. While near-term confidence has declined and threat perceptions have risen, the data shows that companies embracing dynamism through AI deployment, sector expansion, and systematic innovation are delivering superior results. The risk isn't just in moving too fast, but in denial and paralysis during a period of fundamental industry reconfiguration.
