What will keep executives up at night in 2026?

What will keep executives up at night in 2026? Sure, there is Artificial Intelligence, Economic turbulents, Competitor Advantages, and Geopolitical Shifts, that’s enough to keep many executives up at night.

The world today is marked by significant uncertainty, and change is occurring at a rapid pace. The CEO’s cup is full, and they often don’t have much time to prepare for and respond to changes. However, AI will change things even more; the speed with which organizations respond to competitive environments will be a measure of their capabilities.

While a few see AI as a risk to society, this view is often overstated, as the idea that AI will become sentient is itself impossible given our current state of technology. What will keep executives up at night in 2026? When they realize that they have to be able to transition their companies into AI factories, and some may only have 90 days to achieve that objective, depending on their industry and their competitors’ own investments.

What does that AI Factory look like? Well, ostensibly, the organization has to be rewired not just to use AI but to operate at a higher level of leadership intelligence. The question is: can all workers get there? Are they willing to become lifetime learners and invest in themselves? Rewiring the organization is as much about preparing people as it is about investing in AI.

What will keep executives up at night in 2026? It is all of the above, but overall, it will be their ability to compete and respond to the changing dynamics of AI, and we will see and experience those changes from the growth of products in agriculture, to manufacturing, day-to-day operations, and with consumers.

AI will surface in everything from retailing, medical care, pharmaceuticals, education, forecasting climates, and yes, even in government, and it will most likely surface in Municipalities as many of them grapple with the rising cost of services. Cities like Edmonton, Alberta, have already introduced AI in everything from planning to managing bylaws. However, it will even change the roles of elected officials to be more visionary and strategic. And the need for them to have real-world experience.

There is a trickle-down effect with technology, but then it has proliferated just like the internet, ecommerce, social media, and the very thing we cannot leave home without—our cell phones. AI will be the same in more ways than we can currently understand. And that is what keeps executives up at night in 2026?

Ultimately, it is about leadership. Boards and investors want the right people in the corner office. We’ve all seen how poor leadership behaves, emotionally, and with agendas that are about more power over organizations. That will not work in any organization, whether private, public, or government. And that calls for what does the role of leadership look like in the future? I can tell you, for starters, it is not someone without maturity, real-world experience, and discipline.  No organization can afford that.

George Minakakis is the CEO of Inception Retail Group Inc. A former C-suite executive working with Fortune 500 multi-national companies. He’s also the author of four books. Predictive Leadership is his most recent book: