Japanese companies have a strong appetite for AI investment, but their perceived results fall well below the global average. 78% of Japanese executives said they would increase investment over the next 12 months, while only 13% said they had achieved company-wide, sustained results.
According to the Japan results of Accenture's Pulse of Change survey, 78% of Japanese executives said they would increase AI investment over the next 12 months, while only 13% said they had achieved company-wide, sustained business results. The proportion that said they had seen improved productivity was 57%, well below the global average of 81%.
The gap was wider in responses from employees. Among employees in Japan, 57% said AI had improved their productivity and 48% said it had increased their job satisfaction, both below the global averages. 50% of employees believed they should pursue reskilling on their own rather than rely on their employers, a higher level than the global average.
In Japan, 60% expressed an appetite for creating new roles for younger employees based on AI, a high level, while 41% said they intended to hire younger employees, below the global average. Some observers point out that the difference in results is influenced less by the relative merits of the technology than by how it is integrated into people and organizations.
The survey was conducted from April to June 2026 across 20 countries and 19 industries, with responses from 3,000 executives and 3,000 employees. In Japan, responses were obtained from 100 executives and 100 employees.