98% of US Product Leaders Expect Gen AI to Improve Workflows

Generative AI is cementing its status as a near-term operating upgrade for U.S. product chiefs, with rising confidence that it can speed work while also improving control in sensitive areas such as security and compliance.

That is the central message of a new PYMNTS Intelligence report, “From Experiment to Imperative: US Product Leaders Bet on Gen AI.” Based on a survey of 60 chief product officers and heads of product at U.S. technology, goods and services firms with at least $250 million in annual revenue, the study finds broad agreement that generative artificial intelligence will change workflows and decision making within three years.

The report also highlights a more nuanced shift: many product leaders now see gen AI not only as a tool for creativity and automation, but as a way to tighten oversight, strengthen compliance and reduce operational friction. That is a big change from a year earlier, when expectations were meaningfully lower and many organizations were still deciding whether the technology belonged beyond pilot projects.

98% of product leaders expect gen AI to improve internal workflows within three years, up from 70% in March 2024.

95% expect better decision-making accuracy, up from 67%; 83% expect stronger data security, up from 50%.

Provider preferences are split: 50% of tech firms name OpenAI as the leading provider, while about 30% of goods firms name Google, and 24% of services firms favor Microsoft.

Beyond those headline numbers, the report’s most revealing details are about uneven confidence and a market still being sorted.

Tech product leaders stand out as the most willing to say the benefits outweigh ethical concerns, with 44% taking that view compared with 31% across the full sample. Services executives are more cautious, with 80% saying benefits and ethical concerns are about equal, suggesting a sector that is prioritizing trust, reputation and customer-facing risk.

At the same time, rising optimism about security and compliance hints at how enterprise thinking is evolving. Rather than treating gen AI as a new vulnerability, many product leaders increasingly frame it as a way to improve monitoring, documentation and consistency across complex operations.

The report also points to expanding expectations well beyond back-office efficiency, including gains in customer experience, market adaptability and business expansion. In other words, product teams are moving from “Can this work?” to “Where can this help first, and how do we manage it responsibly?”

The most positive takeaway may be that the competitive landscape remains open. No vendor holds a majority across sectors, and preferences appear to reflect practical needs such as integration, infrastructure and industry-specific requirements.

That fragmentation creates room for incumbents and newer players to improve transparency, security and specialized features, which could make gen AI more usable for more firms over time.

At PYMNTS Intelligence, we work with businesses to uncover insights that fuel intelligent, data-driven discussions on changing customer expectations, a more connected economy and the strategic shifts necessary to achieve outcomes. With rigorous research methodologies and unwavering commitment to objective quality, we offer trusted data to grow your business. As our partner, you’ll have access to our diverse team of PhDs, researchers, data analysts, number crunchers, subject matter veterans and editorial experts.