New rules of the game: AI trends that will shape business in 2026

From board capability to data foundations, AI is changing how businesses win and lose. Asam Malik explains what leaders need to get right in 2026.

At first glance, professional football and the technology landscape may seem worlds apart. But in reality, they’re being shaped by the same forces.

In football, a big badge and a famous history don’t win matches on their own. We’ve seen big league clubs unable to rely on their size alone when newer challengers show up with sharper tactics, smarter player selection and fewer legacy constraints.

The same dynamic is playing out in business as AI reshapes and disrupts markets at speed.

For the C-suite looking toward 2026, the question is no longer whether AI matters – it’s whether your organisation can adapt fast enough to keep competing as the rules of the game change.

“We’re in the midst of the fourth industrial revolution with AI. And some organisations will cease to exist if they don’t adapt,” says Asam Malik, UK Executive Member and Technology partner at Forvis Mazars.

Here, Asam outlines some of the AI trends that will define what successful organisations look like in 2026.

AI: not just a friendly match

One of the biggest shifts Asam expects to see in 2026? AI moving from a buzzword to the backbone of how organisations operate.

“We’re moving from AI as a bolt-on to AI as a fundamental part of the business,” he says. “If it’s not shaping how decisions are made, it’s not really delivering value.”

Many organisations are still treating AI as a side project: a lab, a pilot, or a proof of concept that sits outside the core business, rather than being properly integrated. That approach won’t survive the next phase. As AI reshapes customer engagement and operating models, the organisations that win will be those that embed it into the fabric of the enterprise.

This mirrors what happened in football years ago. Individual brilliance still matters, but systems win championships. AI is no longer the star player you build your team around; it’s the formation that determines how the whole team plays.

You can’t play a modern game with an old formation

It’s now common to see titles like chief AI officer or head of AI appearing at executive level. On the surface, that looks like progress. In reality, Asam says many organisations are missing the point.

“What we’re seeing is organisations creating AI roles and then dropping them into very traditional organisational hierarchies with very traditional role outlines. That’s not going to work.”

AI cuts across finance, operations, marketing, sales, HR, R&D, supply chain, technology and strategy . Yet in many businesses, these functions remain siloed. As a result, AI leaders can struggle to create impact or real transformation because the organisation around them hasn’t changed.

“You’re trying to put something fast-moving into a slow structure,” says Asam. “It needs to be geared up for success.”

Hiring AI talent without redesigning decision-making, incentives and accountability is like signing a modern, high-pressing player and asking them to operate in a system built 20 years ago. Talent alone won’t fix structural problems.

The manager must understand the game

This structural gap becomes even more pronounced at board level. As AI increasingly underpins business models, many boards are still shaped by a pre-AI world.

“If AI is now fundamentally part of the business, but the skill sets of boards often do not represent that reality,” says Asam.

That doesn’t mean replacing boards with technologists. But what needs to change is capability and skills. Boards must be able to understand both the opportunities and the risks of AI well enough to challenge executives and guide strategy.

“We’re talking about upskilling, not reskilling. And being deliberate about bringing in people who can supplement existing experience with technology insight,” says Asam.

In football, the best clubs don’t rely on legendary former players alone. They invest in coaches and data analysts who understand how the modern game is played. Boards need to do the same.

Past trophies don’t guarantee survival

For years, many organisations benefited from relatively stable business models. That stability is disappearing. AI is transforming how customers search, compare and buy. In many cases, it’s bypassing traditional platforms entirely.

For example, instead of searching through multiple websites, customers increasingly ask AI to find and recommend options directly. That shift alone threatens businesses built on search traffic, advertising and intermediated discovery.

“In the current environment, adaptability is the ultimate competitive advantage for businesses. If you don’t adapt your operating model, you could have a Blockbuster or a Kodak moment,” warns Asam.

Both businesses moved too slowly to succeed in a changing world and faced severe consequences; Blockbuster has disappeared from the market, while Kodak has spent the last decade trying to turn its business around.

This is where the football analogy really holds. Established clubs with global followings have struggled because they failed to adapt to new tactics, new economics and new challengers. In business, reputation buys time, not safety.

You don’t win titles without the basics

Despite all the talk about AI, the fact is that the biggest barrier to success in 2026 will remain the quality of data.

“The number one issue we’re still seeing is data,” says Asam. “Organisations rush into AI, but the data it is built on isn’t right. The AI produces rubbish, people don’t trust it, and it gets switched off.”

AI systems are only as good as the information they’re trained on. Inaccurate, incomplete or poorly governed data leads to poor decisions at speed.

“I’ve called it artificial information rather than artificial intelligence. If your data isn’t comprehensive and accurate, it won’t work,” adds Asam.

Data quality, architecture and ownership are the equivalent of pre-season fitness. Ignore them, and the season is over before it starts.

Know the rules – or expect relegation

Alongside data, governance is another area many organisations underestimate. New regulations, including the EU AI Act, carry serious financial and reputational risk.

“We’ve seen large organisations fail AI compliance reviews miserably,” says Asam. “And the fines can be significant.”

The danger is complacency. Because few penalties have been issued so far, some boards are tempted to treat governance as a future problem. That approach didn’t end well with GDPR, and it won’t here either.

In 2026, responsible AI, ethical use and regulatory compliance will be core leadership issues, not technical ones. Understanding the rules of the game will matter as much as innovation itself.

Get ready for kick off

Asam’s overarching message to leaders looking ahead to 2026 is to recognise that the rules of business are being rewritten.

“The leaders who adapt will be able to rewrite those rules,” he says. “What wasn’t possible before is now.”

In football terms? History and brand no longer guarantee survival, if they ever did. Big clubs that fail to modernise don’t stay at the top simply because they always have been. Size helps, but adaptability decides who stays competitive.