Author name: Molly Ferncombe

QuantumBlack’s latest analysis shows AI agents now complete complex tasks twice as fast as a year ago, signalling a major shift in enterprise performance. HSBC, Unilever and Rolls-Royce are among the organisations already experimenting with agentic systems to accelerate compliance, innovation and engineering insight, evidence that corporate AI adoption is moving rapidly from theory to practice

Whilst 95% of AI pilots crash and burn, delivering no economic value, a select few organisations are achieving extraordinary breakthroughs—slashing operational times from hours to minutes and unlocking entirely new revenue streams. The difference isn’t technological prowess or timing; it’s the courage to abandon incremental thinking and completely reinvent core business processes. As ServiceNow’s Matt Higham warns, companies clinging to cautious experimentation whilst competitors embrace radical transformation may find themselves in an impossible position: not just behind the curve, but permanently left behind