From hype to reality: 2026 points to a strategic turn in how to use AI and build value

Artificial Intelligence is set to play a decisive role in 2026—not as a competitive force, but as an amplifier of company quality. This assessment comes from Aaron Ross, one of the world's most influential figures in B2B sales and author of Predictable Revenue,, a work that shaped Salesforce's prospecting model and helped the company generate over $100 million in recurring revenue. Co-founder of the Brazilian company Receita Previsível alongside Thiago Muniz and co-author of “From Impossible to Inevitable,”, Ross is now a global reference for organizations seeking to scale growth with predictability. The executive was in Brazil for a lecture during the Growth Conference in São Paulo, hosted by B2B Stack.

Data McKinsey data shows that over the next three years, 92% of companies are expected to increase their investments in AI. Despite this near-unanimous trend, only 1% of leaders consider their organizations truly mature in using the technology—meaning with AI integrated into workflows and capable of generating consistent commercial impact. Given this scenario, a central question arises: how can executives direct resources and guide their teams to achieve maturity, transforming investment into concrete value?

According to Ross, the AI race is producing a silent phenomenon: entire markets full of copies, saturation, and commoditization, as more and more companies use the same tools, the same prompts, and the same strategies. For him, the technology “does not distinguish, it only intensifies.” “When everyone has superpowers, no one does,” states the executive.

Aaron Ross argues that the main transformation lies not in the technology, but in how it exposes the essence of each organization. Strong and coherent companies will see their results grow more rapidly. Meanwhile, misaligned, disorganized, or strategically unclear companies will see their problems multiply at the same rate. “AI does not create advantage. In reality, it accelerates your strengths and your mistakes,” he said.

The risk of haste and the danger of paralysis: points of attention for 2026

For Ross—who helped popularize the concept of specialized sales teams, now a global standard in high-growth companies—the widespread anxiety caused by the rapid adoption of AI is leading organizations to two extreme behaviors: directionless haste and paralysis by over-refinement. Neither path builds real advantage.

“If you are in a hurry, you will reach the wrong place faster,” he stated. Meanwhile, companies that remain frozen, trying to refine processes before acting, “drown while seeking perfection.” In an uncertain environment, according to him, the only stance that generates advantage is one of clear conviction: knowing exactly what one is trying to build, regardless of market speed.

Relationships and systems: focal points for companies

With experience at Silicon Valley companies, intellectual leadership on sales predictability, and over a decade training organizations worldwide, Ross argues that the differentiator in 2026 will lie in the combination of human relationships and solid systems, and that AI will lose its prominent position in this context.

“It is necessary to strengthen bonds within organizations themselves, reducing noise, conflicts, and misalignments that can compromise execution. Another need is to cultivate deep relationships with individual buyers, at a time when trust once again outweighs the volume of automations. The third is to create mechanisms to scale these relationships without losing authenticity, moving away from mass-messaging and focusing on processes that make communication consistent, relevant, and personalized,” emphasizes the executive.

For Ross, this integration between people and systems has always been the foundation of sustainable growth, but in 2026 it will become non-negotiable, precisely because technology will make everything faster—including errors and disorganization.

2026: A year of clarity, not speed

On stage at the Growth Conference, Aaron Ross reinforced that AI will remain indispensable, but its impact will depend entirely on the strategic vision behind it. In a world where tools quickly become accessible to all, the advantage shifts from “having the technology” to how and why it is used.

“In 2026, AI will not differentiate anyone; it will only amplify who you already are,” he concluded. This provocation points to a year where competition should be less technological and more human, strategic, and relational.