Dive Brief:
- CEOs in the U.S. said uncertainty was their top economic concern, with 43% ranking that the biggest threat in 2026, followed by 35% who cited the risk of a downturn or recession, according to new data released Jan. 15 from nonpartisan think tank The Conference Board.
- With regards to artificial intelligence, 46% of U.S. CEOs — the highest share worldwide — said their top priority this year was improving data quality and quantity to measure the ROI, per the research. However, 38% of U.S. CEOs — also the highest share globally — said AI would have a negative impact on their companies this year when it came to societal, demographic and technological shifts.
- Meanwhile, 27% of U.S. CEOs said their main hiring struggle is “expectations of higher compensation,” with only 19% of CEOs in Asia and 15% of CEOs in Europe agreeing, per the survey. Globally, 37% of CEOs said “finding qualified workers” was their key hiring concern.
Dive Insight:
The report was designed to detail the collective insights of CEOs and other C-suite executives worldwide in terms of perceived external and internal challenges and priorities in 2026, per the report.
Overall, the survey found that uncertainty, which was also a defining characteristic of 2025, was seen as the primary challenge for 2026. Looking ahead, CEOs cited concerns over recession risk, tariffs and inflation as well as geopolitical and security instability.
“Heading into 2026, CEOs are navigating converging pressures that are weighing on profits and growth,” Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board, said in a statement. “At the same time, these forces are spurring innovation, with most CEOs worldwide focused on revamping their business models.”
The data highlighted disparities between how U.S. CEOs are approaching the coming year compared to their international counterparts.
Globally, an economic downturn or recession was ranked as the top economic threat among 36% of CEOs, and uncertainty was the main concern for 29%. Regarding AI, 30% of CEOs ranked its 2026 impact as more damaging to their firms than other issues, including climate events and political polarization.
As far as governance concerns, U.S. CEOs said they were most concerned about the “potential erosion of the rule of law” (34%), which the report said “could weaken predictability in regulatory and judicial outcomes in the economy.” The percentage was significantly lower globally (22%).