UK businesses face AI cost visibility gap

KPMG’s latest Global AI Pulse shows AI moving deeper into UK business operations, with 26% of UK companies now using AI as part of everyday work, up from 18% in Q1 2026. The shift is increasing pressure on leaders to connect deployments to measurable business value as organisations expand their use of AI tools and agentic systems.

Cost visibility is emerging as a key obstacle. Among UK leaders, 30% struggle with usage-based costs, 42% have only partial visibility into AI spending, and 33% cite limited understanding of AI cost structures, including tokens, as a challenge to deploying AI agents. KPMG said clearer accountability, governance and workforce adoption need to develop together to turn AI momentum into sustained value.

Companies where CEOs are accountable for AI decisions report higher confidence in their AI strategy, stronger business value and better ROI. More than half of UK leaders report having AI cost monitoring dashboards (57%) and embedding cost reviews into AI approval processes (61%), while organisations with stronger cost visibility are four times more likely to report established Return On Investment (ROI) (25% vs. 6%).