Report: 68% of firms in Kenya to fully adopt AI by December

Close to 70 per cent of organisations in Kenya aim to fully adopt the usage of  Artificial Intelligence (AI) by the end of 2026. 

So far, only 26 per cent have hit the milestone, illustrating slow adoption in the past three years. 

The KPMG’s Global Tech Report 2026 reveals firms are moving beyond pilots and seeking to embed AI into core workflows and offerings, striving to scale investments.

The new report finds that while expectations are high and adoption is rapid, scaling can introduce additional complexity, and returns vary widely.

This surge in optimism is fuelled by a move from isolated experiments to integrating AI and advanced technologies into core systems and scaling their impact.

High performers, those organisations leading in technology maturity, process maturity and value, are already reaping the rewards, reporting an average ROI of close to fivefold, more than double the industry average of twofold.

These leading organisations have progressed beyond pilot programmes, prioritising the scaling of innovation and continually adapting to maintain a competitive edge in a fast-evolving environment.

Other organisations reporting higher ROI include smaller firms (3.6x), those with fewer cost pressures (2.6x), and transformation‑focused organisations (3.2x).

“The ROI pattern is equally nuanced: rather than a single investment ‘sweet spot’, clear ROI ‘zones’ emerge, from early quick wins to accelerating, enterprise‑wide value as maturity increases,’’ report reads.

According to the report, 88 per cent of firms are investing in building agentic AI into their systems, while 74 per cent say that their AI use cases are delivering business value, but only 24 per cent achieve ROI across multiple use cases.

The report further shows that 90 percent plan to grow partnerships and tech ecosystems over the next year, yet 53 per cent still lack the talent needed to bring their digital transformation plans to life.

At least 78 per cent of those sampled agree they must take more risks on emerging technologies to stay relevant.

Guy Holland, Global leader, CIO Center of Excellence, KPMG International, says that the future belongs to leaders who turn intelligence into advantage.

“Our research shows organisations are pushing past the early phase of ‘AI roulette’, placing scattered bets on multiple technologies, and are now increasingly focused on delivering value,’’ Holland says.

“Our 2026 Global Tech Report provides a synopsis of the critical things that high performers are doing better than most; a checklist for tech leaders looking to improve their organisational performance, emulate the high performers, and deliver higher ROI.”

Despite the rapid adoption of agentic AI, organisations still expect 42 per cent of their tech workforce to remain permanent human staff by 2027 - only a five‑point drop from 2025.

High-performing companies plan to retain even more permanent human talent, with 50 per cent remaining in place by 2027, revealing the continued importance of human expertise alongside AI.

Even so, 53 per cent of organisations report they still lack the talent needed to realise their digital transformation strategies.

The survey screened 2,500 executives from 27 countries and territories.