Top 12 Predictions for 2026: What Data Society Leaders Want Every Organization to Know

12. Conferences will surge as a counterweight to digital saturation.
Rob Daniel, Chief Revenue Officer
As automation increases, so will the hunger for authentic connection. “It is one of the few venues where there is not noise. It is just you and your prospects.” Expect more budget going toward events because trust still forms person to person.

11. AI tools will grow fast, then consolidate.
Merav Yuravlivker, Chief Learning Officer and Co-Founder
We are in an experimentation wave. Merav predicts a pullback. “AI is not magic.” Tools that do not deliver contextual accuracy will fade, leaving a few dominant platforms and industry-specific solutions.

10. HR will become an early warning system for workforce strain.
Catie Maillard, Global VP of People
With AI advancing at an increasing pace, burnout will continue to rise unless companies intervene. “As we work to further automate repetitive or administrative tasks, what’s left is deep and collaborative work – which takes a lot out of you! I worry that such intense, sustained functioning will lead to faster paths to burnout, and managers and People teams will need to be better equipped to help employees manage their energy over time.” HR will have to forecast capacity issues, redesign workloads, and advocate for healthier operating norms.

9. Adaptive AI systems will replace static solutions.
Roy Hwang, Chief Technology Officer
AI can no longer be something you deploy once. As Roy says, “Quick-deploy solutions will look outdated within months.” Adaptive, continually evolving systems will become the new benchmark for enterprise maturity.

8. The shift from experimenting to integrating will define winners and laggards.
Merav Yuravlivker, Chief Learning Officer
Shadow AI will remain a problem for companies stuck in experimentation mode. “It is not cohesive. It is not consistent.” Organizations that integrate learning time, best practices, and governance into their culture will dramatically widen the gap.

7. Learning designers will evolve into strategic problem framers.
Michael Harwick, Director of Learning Design
IDs are stepping into a new strategic role. “We must bridge SME expertise, AI capabilities, and what learners actually need.” The craft becomes about building thinking skills rather than delivering instructional content.

6. AI literacy will hinge on the ability to ask better questions.
Michael Harwick
2026 is the year questioning overtakes content knowledge. “If you cannot ask good questions, the learning is not happening.” Employees must learn how to diagnose problems, evaluate outputs, and navigate uncertainty.

5. Compliance will no longer be enough. Behavioral change will matter more.
Meghan Cipperley, Senior Vice President of Learning
Most organizations will offer AI compliance training. Few will transform behavior. Meghan is direct. “You cannot lift and shift content into a new format and call it transformation.” Real learning requires agency, practice, and judgment.

4. Workplaces will be reshaped around collaboration rather than tasks.
Catie Maillard, Global VP of People
AI changes workflow, which means it changes relationships. “If we are spending less time with our heads down and more time collaborating, that completely changes the experience.” Organizations must intentionally redesign how teams interact.

3. AI will expose gaps in governance faster than leaders expect.
Roy Hwang, Chief Technology Officer
Security and responsibility must rise together. “Security is always top of mind. Responsibility is not.” In 2026, that gap becomes visible, creating reputational and operational risk for unprepared organizations.

2. Strategic experimentation will outperform large-scale bets.
Rob Daniel, Chief Revenue Officer
For revenue teams, speed matters more than size. “Everything is changing so quickly. You cannot bet the farm on something because by the time you launch it, the cheese might have moved.” Nimble experimentation becomes a survival skill.

1. AI literacy becomes the defining competitive advantage of the decade.
All Leaders, Data Society
This is the prediction that underpins all the others. AI literacy is not about tools. It is about judgment, context, ethics, and the ability to navigate constant change. As Merav puts it, “Keeping a human in the loop is going to become more and more important.”

Organizations that invest in AI literacy will accelerate. Those who do not will quickly fall behind.

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