C-suite boosts tech investments despite lagging ROI

PwC's chief AI officer reports that C-suite leaders are accelerating AI investment even as ROI lags, driven by competitive anxiety rather than demonstrated returns. The pattern — spend now, prove value later — is the same dynamic that inflated cloud budgets in the early 2010s and left finance teams cleaning up years afterward. For CFOs and boards, the strategic question isn't whether to invest but whether the governance structures exist to tell the difference between a program that's building durable advantage and one that's burning capital to keep pace with a competitor doing the same thing.