AI Adoption Institute launches to help companies measure returns
The AI Adoption Institute has launched to help mid-market companies turn AI spending into measurable business results. The Denver-based organization combines peer circles, original research and a Return on AI scorecard.
- AiAi launched in Denver to help mid-market companies measure AI results.
- Its peer circles include 10 to 16 leaders from non-competing companies.
- Five anonymous research studies are open through Jan. 31, 2027.
- Free webinars on Nov. 12 and Nov. 24 explain Return on AI measurement.
A focus on the gap between AI use and results
AiAi's launch comes as companies continue to adopt AI without consistently linking it to profit, according to figures cited in the institute's announcement. Nearly nine in ten organizations use AI in at least one business function, but only 37% attribute any profit impact to it, a share that has not moved in a year, according to McKinsey's August 2026 data.
McKinsey also found that 6% of organizations qualify as AI high performers, with at least 5% of earnings tied to AI. Separately, 56% of CEOs said their company had seen neither higher revenue nor lower costs from AI, while 12% reported both, according to PwC's 29th Global CEO Survey of 4,454 CEOs, published in January 2026.
Brett Schklar, AiAi's President and Enterprise Futurist, said the organization spoke with nearly 2,000 CEOs and business leaders about their AI progress. "Companies bought the licenses and skipped the hard part, which is changing how the work gets done," Schklar said in the announcement.
Peer circles and research form the institute's model
AiAi's circles bring together 10 to 16 leaders from non-competing companies. Groups are organized by role, including HR, finance, operations, marketing, sales and CEOs. A trained Catalyst leads each circle, which works on real AI problems every month.
AI City Circles meet in person in Denver, Miami, New York City, San Diego and Sacramento. AI Anywhere Circles meet virtually. The institute says the circles are designed to give business leaders a recurring setting to compare approaches and apply measurement to AI initiatives.
AiAi also has five short, anonymous studies open through Jan. 31, 2027. They cover AI adoption, HR, the CEO perspective, trust and outside AI consultants. The first findings are scheduled for publication in Q1 2027.
"Profitable AI adoption is a leadership problem before it's a technology problem," Schklar said. He described the Return on AI scorecard as a way to measure results and identify initiatives that should no longer receive funding.
Webinars introduce the scorecard and maturity scale
Schklar and Dr. Rebecca Nusbaum, AiAi's Head of Research & Education, will host free 45-minute live sessions on Nov. 12 and Nov. 24. Both sessions cover how the circles operate, where a company sits on AiAi's five-level Operational Maturity Scale and how Return on AI is measured.
The sessions begin at 11:00 a.m. MT, or 1:00 p.m. ET, on both dates. They are the same session, and everyone who registers receives the recording. An in-person lunch session is also scheduled in Denver for Dec. 15.
AiAi says it serves mid-market companies with 50 to 5,000 employees, helping them move from AI experimentation to measurable results through peer circles, research and events. For those companies, the institute's launch offers a structured approach to evaluating AI work, though its announcement does not provide results from the program itself.
