My AI Predictions For 2026
Here are my AI Predictions for 2026, from my notes for The AI Moment Podcast end of year prediction podcast
No AGI Or Super Intelligence
The hype trains stopped and will be distanced even further in 2026
Many will want to redefine what AGI is (again)
Super intelligence will be reintroduced
Blocks
More big companies will block certain AI
More departments will block shadow AI and certain usage
Bad actors: Interviewing candidates is becoming hard until questions around their plan
AI Browsers Have Their Moment
More usage = more productivity
More extensions built for AI browsers
More innovation will have to happen to make them sticky - Chrome will be front runner for many as baked-in trust
Big AI Hacks
Claude MCP was already used to exploit security; this will continue
OpenAI will be targeted
Agentic will be a huge target as it has billions of $ dollars invested in human capital
China, North Korea and Russia will be looking to exploit Western Models
Multiplayer AI - not just single player
Teams will be working with AI and LLMs - not just sit in slack channels or teams channels
LLMs will be pushing to be the platform to work inside
Many tools will push for you to bring your colleagues into the product and become the official workspace for teams
Education All In vs All Out
Some businesses will push for educational institutions to go into AI
Educators are leaning towards a lockout of AI - I can see this being something that creates mass headlines and local issues
Universities will have to reconsider AI importance or lack of understanding to build future-ready students
ChatGPT vs Gemini fight continues
The fight will continue in
Team mode
Group chat
Group shopping
Family usage
Much better features - nano banana and veo to improve will push ChatGPT to improve their capabilities
Strategy Fight: Increased usage means increased pricing - unless Google wants to slash pricing to see ChatGPT’s appetite to compete
Meta’s AI Identity Crisis
They have lost so much ground, but can pull it back with integrations into WhatsApp to improve its functionality, especially in groups
They will crack a feature or Product feature that will make waves
Standalone and building from scratch isn’t a muscle they have as an org anymore, AI has proven this however good or bad Llama is
They will however do well with Meta glasses and another product
They have momentum and have a large buy-in from many partners and enough buzz to sell more units
Health Breakthrough
I predict a few health-related breakthroughs helping in the cancer or life-threatening illness space
Long trails will kick off
Many are seeing health benefits from AI - I predict there will be dedicated apps and extensions inside of LLMs that help people to become “healthier”
Claude Continues To Own Technical AI
Building a number of features to help do things more safely
Agentic AI And Commerce Start-Stop
Many large businesses are investing heavily here, but black hats will exploit it many times
Many payment companies will reduce their risk tolerance, which starts out high
There will be a real kickstart in early adopters using agentic (built inside of Google search AI Mode) but they will struggle for wide adoption with fear
AI Team Members
Agentic tasks being completed by AI team members
Team members who can manage bots, assistants, and agents will be given a budget to “hire” more AI assistants and act like team members
Agentic team members/pods will be managed by
AI team reviews - will be able to be added into performance reviews based on your inputs and scoring of your work…
Apple Slowly Re-enters The AI Market With SLM’s
Marketed as on-device privacy-first AI.
Helping with small tasks and automations inside Spotlight search, reminders, shortcuts, inside Apple’s apps like iMessage, Safari, Calendar, Apple Mail
Increased AI Siri success for older users (powered by Gemini)
I can see privacy first and safe being a core message for Apple
Vibe coding consolidation
Many are struggling to find its actual PMF (product market fit) which will lead to a number of big players merging or acquiring close competitors.
Legal Battle Against AI
The battle for copyright usage will continue to heat up - TKO suing OpenAI, film companies suing AI companies, big hitters like Disney etc, will continue to protect IP and leverage legal
B2B B2C Confusion
Many startups will look for ROI and flip between consumer and enterprise use cases
Many will have to serve both sides while they find some PMF
Battle for PLG
Product-led growth will be something every app and LLM’s desires, but few have found it
Continued engineering of features will help PLG - churn model from one model to another model
AI Regulation & Governance: Government regulation and policy frameworks (EU AI Act enforcement, US state-level regulations, global AI safety standards) will likely accelerate in 2026.
Energy & Environmental Impact: The sustainability conversation around AI's energy consumption and data centre demands will intensify, potentially leading to "green AI" initiatives or backlash. Many companies are proactively messaging in this area
AI in Elections & Disinformation: With various elections globally, AI-generated content and deepfakes could play a significant role in political campaigns and information warfare. US Midterms will be the first main election being leveraged by political actors
Voice AI & Ambient Computing: Voice interfaces and ambient AI assistants beyond current smart speakers likely will see major upgrades. Alexa+ and Siri hinting at upgrades Q1
AI + Robotics Convergence: Physical AI embodied in humanoid robots or specialised robotics likely will see commercial pilots, most likely in manufacturing and logistics - Amazon
Small Language Models (SLMs) Proliferation: Beyond Apple, there may be a broader trend toward efficient, specialised SLMs for specific use cases rather than general-purpose large models.
AI Talent Wars: Competition for AI engineers and researchers could intensify, with major shifts in compensation, remote work policies, and talent acquisition strategies.
AI PM’s will be paid huge salaries and be an area many invest heavily in
Developer Tools & Infrastructure: The ecosystem around AI development tools, model training infrastructure, and MLOps could see significant consolidation.
Entertainment & Gaming:
Vibe coded to mainstay app AI-generated games, interactive storytelling, and personalised entertainment experiences (on your devices) could become a major category - this is what ranks number 1.
AI-driven choose your own adventures is an area that should be considered
Financial Services Disruption: Beyond agentic commerce, AI will be heavily invested in to try to reshape investment advice, risk assessment, and financial planning. Banks are investing huge amounts of money in AI to gain competitive advantages - Example → https://www.theregister.com/2025/12/01/hsbc_buddies_up_with_mistral/
