Are you thinking about AI in IT in 2026? It certainly appears that many vendor and enterprise organizations are. I sometimes feel that we are currently overly focused on artificial intelligence (AI) in IT service management (ITSM) above all else. However, there’s no doubt that AI in ITSM, hopefully with a focus on improved employee experiences, is where the ITSM industry and community are heading at pace right now – with the level of adoption and availability changing rapidly. But where are we currently, and where are we heading with AI in IT?
Insights From the Atomicwork and ITSM.tools Annual AI in IT Survey
At the end of 2024, we ran our second AI in IT survey with Atomicwork to better understand how AI is being adopted in IT, with a primary focus on ITSM. The results for this AI in IT in 2025 survey can be found here (and some highlights are shared below).
We’re rerunning the survey, collecting responses now to publish a fresh AI in IT in 2026 report in time for the start of 2026.
The AI in ITSM in 2026: Why Fresh AI in IT Data Is Critical for 2026 Planning
So many AI capabilities have already been added to ITSM tools, as evidenced in this recent ITSM.tools research with PeopleCert. This bodes well for the AI in IT in 2026 survey data.
The 2025 survey with Atomicwork also highlighted a significant level of AI adoption in IT, and we expect this to have grown significantly in 2025 (but only the new survey data will prove or deny this).
The ITSM industry appears to be moving rapidly in terms of AI adoption. However, as with the introduction of anything new in the ITSM space, it’s important to understand the real-world stance on what’s being used rather than simply looking at what’s available in ITSM tools. Especially when the AI capabilities in ITSM tools are additional cost items and perhaps awaiting budgetary “permission.”
Ultimately, it’s only through these AI in IT surveys that we, as an industry, can fully appreciate the level of AI adoption in ITSM. Otherwise, we likely get the “everyone else is doing it, bar us” perception.
Please take the AI in IT in 2026 rvey to help everyone better understand our current position and collectively where we are heading with AI in IT.
Understanding AI Adoption Trends and Change Levels in ITSM
The AI in IT in 2026 survey will also examine the changes that have occurred over the last year.
It definitely feels as though AI adoption has snowballed in 2025. But what’s the reality? Are we using AI more? Do we trust AI more? And where are we with – buzzword alert – Agentic AI?
The AI in IT in 2026 survey keeps some of last year’s questions (some with a few tweaks for greater clarity), adds in some new ones, and also focuses on what has changed.
Why Your Input Matters: Contribute to the AI in IT in 2026 Survey
Everyone benefits from freely available ITSM industry data – whether you are in a vendor, consultancy, enterprise, or service provider role. This may be to make more informed decisions, validate existing ones, or for many other reasons.
This new AI in IT in 2026 survey will hopefully provide a wealth of new AI-focused IT data points that will benefit everyone in the ITSM industry. It’s the type of industry-focused data that, unfortunately, isn’t available from other sources at present.
Please take a few minutes to complete the survey, as it will help us help everyone. The survey is again anonymous. The survey data will be fed into various helpful content pieces, including an Atomicwork and ITSM.tools report, blogs and articles, and webinars.
As in previous years. A similar survey will also be run with end-users.
Key Takeaways From the 2025 AI in IT Survey
If you want an idea of the value of these annual AI in IT surveys, here are some insights from last year’s survey respondents:
- 41% stated that their organizations have an IT budget allocation for AI initiatives. With the ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Not applicable’ responses removed, this is 71%.
- The C-suite was most likely to lead on AI in organizations with 1-100 employees. IT leadership was most likely to lead for organizations with over 500 employees.
- AI investments originating from the C-suite were least likely to have a positive ROI. They were significantly more likely to have a negative ROI.
- European-led organizations were most likely to have AI requirements originate in the C-suite. They were also most likely to have no AI investments planned.
- The top areas where AI impacted ITSM were data analysis (55%), end-user assistants (48%), knowledge management (43%), and incident management (39%).
- The top realized benefits were increasing employee productivity (40%), improving user experience (33%), optimizing operations and reducing costs (29%), and enabling better decision-making (28%).
- 55% didn’t trust AI to make decisions without human oversight, versus 25% that did. With the ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Other’ responses removed, this is 31% trust and 69% distrust.
The included correlations are taken from a separate ITSM.tools article: https://itsm.tools/ai-itsm-correlations/
So let’s see what the AI in IT in 2026 survey tells us about AI adoption in ITSM.
Further Reading
Stephen Mann
Principal Analyst and Content Director at the ITSM-focused industry analyst firm ITSM.tools. Also an independent IT and IT service management marketing content creator, and a frequent blogger, writer, and presenter on the challenges and opportunities for IT service management professionals.
Previously held positions in IT research and analysis (at IT industry analyst firms Ovum and Forrester and the UK Post Office), IT service management consultancy, enterprise IT service desk and IT service management, IT asset management, innovation and creativity facilitation, project management, finance consultancy, internal audit, and product marketing for a SaaS IT service management technology vendor.
