The gap between AI buzz and AI reality is wide, and there's not much reliable data about what's actually happening inside organizations. That's why we're running the 2026 State of AI for Business Survey.
Asked how concerned they are about AI's impact on their own job, the largest group of respondents (43%) in SmarterX's 2026 State of AI for Business Report chose "mixed." Only 20% said they're somewhat or very concerned. And 36% said they're not concerned at all or not very concerned.
But in that same report, 71% of respondents said they believe AI will eliminate more jobs than it creates over the next three years.
The report is based on responses from more than 2,100 professionals on how they understand, adopt, and organize around AI.
The takeaway? The workforce broadly expects disruption just not for them.
Why the Disconnect?
Two things help explain the gap.
-
First, we surveyed an AI-forward audience. The people who responded are further along with AI than the general workforce. They're already using these tools, many of them daily.
-
Second, there's a clear pattern in the data: the more advanced someone is with AI, the less worried they are about their own role. People who have built fluency with these tools feel fairly safe.
Where Concern Does Show Up
But when you look across functions, certain roles feel the pressure more acutely. Finance professionals reported the highest rate of acute concern with 20% saying they're "very concerned." Engineering and IT followed at 15%. Marketing and Product both came in at 13%.
That pattern likely reflects how automatable the core tasks in those functions already are. Financial analysis, code generation, content creation, and product specification, are all areas where AI capability is advancing fast.
What This Means
The people who responded “mixed” to the question about how concerned that AI will impact their job aren’t ignoring AI or dismissing it. They see both the risk and the opportunity, and they haven't fully resolved which side will win out for them personally.
That's actually a productive place to be if it leads to action. The risk is that "mixed" becomes a comfortable middle ground where people acknowledge the disruption without doing anything differently in response to it.
The professionals who feel the most secure in this data are the ones who have invested in building real AI skills. That's not a coincidence. Fluency is increasingly what separates cautious optimism from genuine preparedness.
Check Out the Full Report
You can read and download the complete 2026 State of AI for Business Report for more insights on organizational readiness, training gaps, governance, and more.
Taylor Radey
Director of Research, SmarterX