2026 State of Design & Make: AI Pulse
Discover how organizations turn AI into value in the 2026 State of Design & Make: AI Pulse report, with insights from 2,500 leaders.
2 min read
AI tool use is ubiquitous. 98% of leaders across Design and Make industries use at least one AI tool.
AI has the greatest impact on productivity. 84% of leaders say AI has increased productivity at their organization.
Use of agentic AI is rapidly increasing. 59% of organizations already are or plan to use agentic AI within a year.
AI early adopters see advantages across the board. Organizations that aggressively pursue AI implementation are seeing substantial benefits. Decision-making, quality of output, innovation, and cost all improved by double digits compared to other organizations.
As AI becomes increasingly embedded in everyday workflows across Design and Make industries, the question is no longer whether organizations should use AI, but how they can implement it to deliver meaningful value. As adoption accelerates, competitive advantage is beginning to move away from access to the technology itself and toward the ability to apply it effectively across systems, processes, and teams.
These capabilities point toward a future in which AI becomes an active layer in how work is organized—connecting data, automating processes, and enabling more dynamic decision-making. But realizing that future depends on foundations that many organizations are still building.
Ultimately, the opportunity ahead is substantial, and the organizations that succeed will not be those that adopt AI the fastest, but those that integrate it most effectively—aligning AI, data, and talent around strategic priorities.
For the 2026 State of Design & Make: AI Pulse report, Autodesk surveyed and interviewed 2,500 global industry leaders across the architecture, engineering, construction, and operations (AECO); design and manufacturing (D&M); and media and entertainment (M&E) industries for their insights about AI's impact on business today, and how to plan for an AI-forward future.
Download the full report to view more insights along with success stories from leaders across the Design and Make industries.
