Commissioned by Agent IQ, survey reveals operational efficiency as a primary driver for AI adoption, while talent gaps and trust concerns emerge as potential barriers
ATLANTA, Georgia – June 23, 2026 – York Public Relations, the nation’s leading public relations and marketing firm dedicated exclusively to financial institutions and fintechs, today released The 2026 State of Artificial Intelligence, a report commissioned by Agent IQ, a provider of AI-powered solutions for financial institutions, and based on survey responses from 103 executives and senior leaders at banks and credit unions across the United States. The report provides a detailed, data-driven view of where the financial services industry currently stands on artificial intelligence, and where it is headed.
Conducted by York Public Relations from May 14-29, 2026, the survey examined AI adoption stages, investment priorities, goals driving AI spending, barriers to implementation, expected workforce impact, and operationalization strategies. Respondents represent a range of institutional sizes and types, from community banks and credit unions to larger regional institutions.
Key findings from the report include:
- Most financial institutions remain in early stages of AI adoption. The largest share of respondents (36%) describe their institutions as exploring or piloting AI use cases, while 32% report actively using AI internally for staff productivity. Just 6% have deployed AI in customer-facing interactions, and only 2% have scaled it across multiple functions.
- Operational efficiency is a priority over revenue growth. A striking 82% of respondents identified improving operational efficiency and reducing manual work as a primary goal driving AI investment, outpacing employee productivity (58%), customer experience (50%), risk management (42%), and revenue growth (16%) by a wide margin.
- Talent gaps and trust concerns are the defining constraints. Lack of internal expertise or resources led the list of adoption barriers at 62%, followed by data privacy and security concerns (58%) and trust in AI outputs and accuracy (44%). Notably, trust in AI accuracy ranked higher than regulatory and compliance risk (32%), signaling that institutions are less concerned about whether AI can be used and more focused on whether it can be trusted at scale.
- AI is changing how bankers work, not eliminating the need for bankers. The largest share of respondents (35%) believe AI will significantly increase productivity while keeping humans central to the work. Another 27% believe AI will automate a meaningful portion of current tasks and 18% anticipate a shift toward more advisory and relationship-focused roles in response.
- The future of AI adoption in financial services is partner-led. Fifty-seven percent of respondents are pursuing partnership-based implementation models, with 29% combining internal strategy with outsourced technology partners and 20% relying on AI embedded within existing banking platforms. Only 6% are building AI capabilities primarily in-house.
“Based on our survey, the vast majority of financial institutions are not adopting AI to reduce headcount. Eight in ten respondents expect AI to meaningfully augment what their employees do, freeing bankers to focus on the relationship-driven work that defines great financial institutions. We’re seeing this play out with our own clients. One of our most innovative bank clients, which has made AI a central pillar of its growth strategy, has actually grown its staff by as much as 30 percent while expanding its AI capabilities. That is what effective AI adoption looks like in practice.”
The report also identifies a significant opportunity within the 36% of institutions still evaluating implementation models or operating without formal AI plans. As the report notes, these institutions are not opposed to AI adoption. They are navigating a decision about which model fits their size, team, risk tolerance, and existing vendor relationships, creating an opening for technology providers and advisors to play a larger role in guiding their path forward.
The State of AI is available online.
For more information or media inquiries, contact info@yorkpublicrelations.com.
About York Public Relations
York Public Relations is the fastest-growing public relations and marketing firm dedicated exclusively to financial institutions and fintechs. Creators of the award-winning The State of Fintech, the firm offers Public Relations, Media Relations, Social Media Marketing, Content Marketing, Creative Marketing, and Crisis Communication services. Total funding of its client base exceeds $2 billion and represents over 10,000 financial institutions. For more information, visit www.yorkpublicrelations.com.