72% of African CEOs put AI at the top of their investment list
KPMG's Africa CEO Outlook finds bosses confident about growth and hiring, but only 14% say their firms are keeping pace with AI.
Lagos — Artificial intelligence is now a top investment priority for 72% of African chief executives, according to the 2026 KPMG Africa CEO Outlook, launched in Ikoyi, Lagos, on Thursday, Premium Times reports. The survey covered 176 African CEOs as part of a global poll of 1,400.
Confident and hiring
- 79% are confident about their own company's growth; 72% about their home economy.
- 86% reported revenue growth in their last financial year.
- 84% expect to employ more people over the next three years.
- 86% plan to keep and retrain high-potential staff, and 82% are redesigning roles for people and AI to work together.
The readiness gap
Only 14% of African leaders say their organisations are keeping pace with or ahead of AI, against 66% globally, and African CEOs expect a longer wait for returns: 42% say more than three years. Skills gaps (59%), AI training (58%) and finding talent (52%) are the main hurdles. Cybersecurity and supply-chain resilience are each the top growth threat for 31%.
Tola Adeyemi, CEO of KPMG One Africa, said AI is expected to reshape the workforce rather than shrink it, and that the priority now is to move from spotting opportunities to acting on them.
On sustainability, 65% say they can meet new reporting rules, up from 55% a year earlier.
Source: Premium Times, 23 October 2026.
