Chasing agentic AI success at scale in 2026 (www.fastforward.blog)

The tech community is abuzz with speculation that 2026 might finally be the breakthrough year for agentic AI, despite the lackluster results from 2025. Businesses are expressing significant interest—62% of leaders surveyed by McKinsey indicated that their organizations are experimenting with AI agents. However, most are still in the pilot stages, with nearly two-thirds not yet scaling AI across enterprises. This gap between hype and reality has raised concerns, as vendors including Salesforce and Workday acknowledge the complexities of implementing AI agents within existing enterprise architectures. As Accenture’s CEO Julie Sweet suggests, the upcoming year may see a pivotal shift where companies begin to recognize AI not just as a technological tool but as a catalyzing force for transforming work processes. However, previous predictions have amplified skepticism, with analysts cautioning that significant barriers remain. The challenges of governance, security, and cross-domain functionality have yet to be effectively addressed. With heightened expectations for 2026, the AI/ML community is poised to watch closely whether these agents will yield real value or if the same narrative will persist into another year.