A new multi-year study by the Wharton Human-AI Research (WHAIR) center and GBK Collective reveals that generative AI (Gen AI) has moved beyond the pilot phase and into mainstream business use. According to the 2025 survey of over 800 U.S. enterprise leaders, 82% now use Gen AI weekly. That’s more than double the rate from 2023, with nearly half reporting daily use.
The findings show that large companies, each generating over $50 million in annual revenue, are increasingly integrating Gen AI into everyday operations.
The report, titled “Accountable Acceleration: Gen AI Fast-Tracks Into the Enterprise,” also showed that three in four enterprises already report positive ROI from Gen AI initiatives, and 72% now track measurable performance indicators such as profitability, productivity, and throughput.
Investment is also accelerating, with 88% of leaders planning to increase spending over the next 12 months, and 62% expecting budgets to grow by more than 10% within the next two to five years.
Wharton School Professor of Marketing Stefano Puntoni said, “As leaders across functional areas continue to increase investment in Gen AI, the overwhelming feedback is they are not only looking to use AI to boost employee productivity, which has become table stakes, but to integrate it effectively and responsibly into workflows to drive measurable ROI.”
Despite the optimism highlighted in the report, the study identifies skill atrophy as an emerging risk. While 89% of executives believe AI enhances human work, 43% worry that employee skills may stagnate or decline as automation takes on more cognitive tasks.
Recruiting qualified Gen AI talent and training existing staff are now top challenges, with nearly half of leaders citing advanced AI expertise shortages and 41% noting a lack of change management skills among managers.
Experts warn that without focused upskilling and role redesign, companies risk widening the gap between AI capability and human readiness.
Unlock the full findings from the report here.