There's so much hype around AI agents. Agents can perform complex tasks, work well in teams, and achieve results. Agents are proving to be an extremely effective way for companies to unlock the value of AI.
But while AI is a catalyst for significant change, humans developed the technology and will shape its impact. Game changers—those who build businesses, create value, and turn great ideas into reality—are still people.
Dan is the Director of Artificial Intelligence for PwC US and Catherine is the Director of Business Management for PwC US.
For decades, control teams pursued automation and efficiency—often through innovation.
This was driven by shareholder pressure, technological advances and extensive data that allowed companies to gain deep insight into ROI. But today there is a lot of intelligence, and transformation depends not so much on optimization as on creative thinking.
Efficiency will happen naturally; The real imperative for leaders is to invest in human potential. They should look beyond what AI agents can do and focus on how teams will adapt and thrive with them.
A clear signal of this shift is the intense competition for top AI talent. Tech companies are offering extraordinary compensation packages to hire the people behind breakthroughs. Demand for deep AI expertise is growing across all industries, highlighting that it is people, not just algorithms, who drive meaningful change.
With 73% of executives saying AI agents will provide a significant competitive advantage in the next year, it's clear that leaders see the potential. Success will come from team development and adaptive agent-based workflows.
Thriving organizations will empower people to think differently and bring human strengths such as curiosity, intelligence and creativity to work. cooperation with artificial intelligence agents to improve productivity.
Humans lead, AI agents step up efforts
The main role of any team is problem solving.
From revenue issues to customer support issues and everything in between, you need teams to solve these mission-critical problems. AI agents don't solve these strategic problems—humans do.
AI agents help support these high-performing teams by providing valuable insights and data, increasing efficiency, increasing productivity, and even identifying new revenue streams.
There is a growing belief that the presence of AI agents alone will enable the creation of high-performing teams. But the ingredients of an effective team cannot be replicated by AI agents. Deep specialization and experience, diversity of thought, and the ability to think forward and creatively remain unique human strengths.
The AI agents themselves also require management. Their results are only as good as the leadership and supervision they receive.
And with 87% of executives expecting AI agents to transform governance within the next year, it is clear that governance models must evolve in real time, moving from static control to continuous oversight that keeps pace with innovation.
Quality is not subject to self-regulation—humans must review, calibrate, and continually evaluate the performance of AI agents. AI agents alone will not change the rules of the game. AI agents will enable humans to do their best work, act more strategically, solve complex problems and realize the impossible.
Where are today's opportunities?
Executives know they need artificial intelligence for the next stage of growth. But they ask: How do we prioritize the teams in which we invest and implement AI? How can we turn AI into a real business?
AI has areas where it performs well and areas where it struggles. AI excels at repeatable, rule-based tasks. It can fill CRM databases, collate data, make appointments, write basic documents, respond to many client questions and support for software development.
It's time to align your investments accordingly. Achieve quick, tangible results so employees are energized by AI agents. Look for ways to implement AI agents into customer service, data science, and content marketing teams in the short term—areas where you see immediate ROI.
Of those already using AI agents, 66% say they see measurable benefits through increased productivity; more than half say it has reduced costs and improved the customer experience.
But no less important than where to lean is where to pause. We are seeing many companies implementing AI agents evenly across all departments. But the value these teams get from AI agents depends on the nature of their work, the technology savvy of the team, and whether the AI agents can perform department-specific tasks.
Every department is different. Rushing to introduce AI agents to the wrong team can lead to inefficiency, drain morale, and cost your business dearly.
Big changes are happening, but companies will spend the next decade integrating AI into their teams. It's critical to make this transition thoughtfully, expanding agent use cases and expanding how agents support their human colleagues.
Why Game Changers Will Remain Human
Humans are the extraordinary creators of the wheel, engines, economic systems, computer systems, art, and all the theories that explain the world around us. Each of these innovations changed the rules of the game for humanity. There are changes to the rules of the game business And also people who think differently, teams that truly innovate, companies that build to win.
The transition to artificial intelligence agents can be frightening for workers. Suddenly, tasks performed by humans are being performed by AI. Employees may feel insecure in their positions. The same people who are critical to making effective change are often the ones who worry about potential replacement. And this is why empathetic leadership and transparent communications are so important.
Leaders must commit to investing in their people's AI development: how to collaborate with AI agents, how to leverage the company's information assets, and work as high-performing teams—humans and AI agents—to innovate. The game changers of tomorrow must be developed today.
But this is not happening yet. More than 60% of workers plan to change the way they work in the next year with the help of AI, while less than a third of executives say they will invest in upskilling themselves. Without upskilling, we risk acting cautiously at a time when bold innovation is needed.
As good as AI is at rule-based tasks, it has not yet demonstrated the thinking, creativity, or vision based on first principles that define true innovation. AI agents should not replace human relationships, lead teams, independently develop people, or make strategic decisions. They can help us with this, but these value drivers belong to the people.
These creative investments will be easier to see in the long term, as companies that invest in developing innovative thinking will stand out. AI can perform many tasks at a “good enough” level. The “floor” for companies will be raised.
Great companies that truly differentiate themselves will be those that have innovative thinkers driving their strategy forward.
Victory in the future
Be on the lookout for violators. No one will wait for big companies to change. Entrepreneurs and small and medium businesses enterprises will use low-cost computing and intelligence to disrupt corporations.
Often, small and focused firms succeed not by competing with industry giants, but by owning and reinventing a critical part of the value chain. Many of the game changers we know today are social mediasearch and technology began as hungry and smart entrepreneurs who formed high-performing teams.
The formula for winning tomorrow is likely to be similar. High-performing teams are diverse and attract the right people from different backgrounds, different ways of thinking, and from different organizations. AI agents add a new element of diversity to teams.
High-performing teams are also motivated to take risks and be rewarded for their successes. And great teams have great talent. Find and develop your players who can change the rules of the game.
Change is difficult. Figuring out where markets are going, what to do about it, and making the right choices is not easy. AI agents will help simplify some tasks, but humans will still make executive decisions.
When it comes to artificial intelligence, remember that no matter how powerful this technology is, it will not be a panacea for your business. AI agents will not win the future.
These will be the people and teams who know how to use them.
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