---
title: "AI costs: budgets are soaring in companies — Marsanne Studio AI watch"
description: "An Esker study shows that 72% of finance departments have exceeded their AI budget and are looking for proof of value."
url: "https://marsanne.studio/en/ai-watch/ai-costs-budgets-are-soaring-in-b496df/"
lang: "en"
---

[Marsanne Studio](https://marsanne.studio/en/)

[← Back to home](https://marsanne.studio/en/ai-watch)

[← The AI watch](https://marsanne.studio/en/ai-watch)

Data study · 25 September 2026

# AI costs: budgets are soaring in companies

Original title, in French: “Coûts de l’IA : les budgets explosent dans les entreprises”

**Publication**

DAF Magazine (France)

**Author**

Christina DIEGO

**Published on**

25 September 2026 · read in the page structured data

## Summary

A global Esker study, the "2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index", published on 24 September 2026, shows that finance departments are adopting AI with caution. According to the study, 72% of respondents say their company has spent more than planned on AI projects, and 65% struggle to link the use of AI to specific business results. CFOs remain committed to human oversight: 78% believe AI should not set revenue targets. Productivity is cited as the main benefit by 58% of respondents, ahead of cash flow. Data quality and systems integration remain major obstacles. The survey was conducted in August 2026 among 338 finance leaders in the United States, the United Kingdom, the EU, Australia and Canada.

Summary based on the full text of the article.

[Read the article on DAF Magazine →](https://www.daf-mag.fr/bi-1244/transformation-processus-2133/couts-de-lia-les-budgets-explosent-dans-les-entreprises-27464)

## Figures cited

-   72 %
    
    share of companies that exceeded their AI budget over 12 months
    
    338 finance leaders, including 137 CFOs, August 2026, US/UK/EU/Australia/Canada
    
    > « 72 % des répondants déclarent que leur entreprise a dépensé davantage que prévu dans des projets IA au cours des douze derniers mois. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   75 %
    
    increase in the cost of AI-related software and subscriptions
    
    338 finance leaders, August 2026
    
    > « 75 % constatent déjà une hausse des coûts des logiciels et abonnements liés à l’IA. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   65 %
    
    difficulty linking the use of AI to business results (finance leaders)
    
    338 finance leaders, August 2026
    
    > « Ils sont 65 % à déclarer rencontrer des difficultés à relier l’utilisation de l’IA à des résultats métier précis. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   78 %
    
    CFOs who believe AI should not set revenue targets
    
    137 CFOs, August 2026
    
    > « 78 % estiment que l’IA ne devrait pas exécuter de décisions concernant la fixation des objectifs de chiffre d’affaires, contre 11 % des autres responsables financiers. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   74 %
    
    CFOs ruling out AI for allocating headcount and hiring budgets
    
    137 CFOs, August 2026
    
    > « 74 % des Daf excluent son intervention dans l’allocation des effectifs et des budgets de recrutement, contre 17 % des autres répondants. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   70 %
    
    productivity improvement observed by CFOs
    
    137 CFOs, August 2026
    
    > « 70 % d’entre eux constatent une amélioration de la productivité grâce à l’IA, contre 50 % des autres responsables financiers. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   48 %
    
    data quality as the main obstacle to expanding the role of AI
    
    338 finance leaders, August 2026
    
    > « Pour 48 % des responsables financiers interrogés, la qualité des données constitue le principal obstacle à l’élargissement du rôle de l’IA. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    
-   66 %
    
    finance leaders aware of their teams using unapproved AI tools
    
    338 finance leaders, August 2026
    
    > « 66 % des responsables financiers savent ou imaginent que des collaborateurs de leur fonction utilisent de tels outils d’IA. »
    
    Source: 2026 Global Finance AI Trust Index (Esker)
    

## Classification

**Country**

United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada

**Company size**

All sizes

**Industries**

Banking, insurance, asset management, finance departments

**Companies**

Esker (study author)

**Keywords**

ai budget, finance department, ai governance, return on investment, cfo, productivity

Entry written by Marsanne Studio from the cited article, with the help of an AI model (claude-sonnet-5). The rights to the article and its illustrations belong to DAF Magazine and its author. Entry translated from French by Claude Sonnet 5.5.