Executives have spent the past few years grappling with AI-driven change while chasing its competitive potential. In 2027, AI enters its next phase. Adoption will reach mass scale, AI agents will proliferate, and risks and costs will mount. Leaders will respond by racing to gain control. That pursuit of control will define 2027.

Companies will scramble to modernize core systems and practices as they tighten their grip over data, agents, costs, and even their workforce. They won’t be the only ones vying for control: Wary consumers will push back against algorithmic manipulation and deceitful AI content while business buyers turn to human experts to validate AI’s recommendations. Employees, meanwhile, will resist uses of AI that feel more like surveillance than enablement.

This messy tug-of-war will come with peril. In trying to control AI, too many leaders will inadvertently constrain its value.…