By Nauman Khan
Publication Date: 2025-12-10 11:33:00
This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
Executives are shaping IT budgets for 2026, with artificial intelligence expected to be a key focus, according to a KeyBanc survey released Tuesday.
Overall IT budgets are projected to grow 3.7% next year, but AI allocations are rising faster, reaching 4.7% of total budgets compared with 3.2% this year.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) stands to benefit, with 91% of surveyed CIOs expecting to increase spending on its cloud and AI offerings. The company also leads in projected net budget increases. KeyBanc analyst Jackson Ader maintains an Overweight rating and a $630 target for Microsoft, which edged up 0.1% to $491.32 in Tuesday trading.
On the other hand, Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) faces weaker demand for AI-enhanced customer-relationship tools. Only 36% of respondents expressed willingness to pay for AI features, down from 46% in the previous survey. Adoption of Salesforce’s Agentforce AI platform remains low at 7%, compared with 76%…
