LONDON, UK – 04/03/2026 – () – An increasing number of global companies are prioritizing innovation as the core of their long-term growth plans—yet new research indicates that ambition alone may not be sufficient. A collaborative study by Ipsos, Alchemy-Rx, and Market Logic, titled Innovation Reignited: C-Suite Insights on the State of Innovation, uncovers a widening gap between executive expectations for innovation-driven growth and the operational realities that risk slowing progress.
The survey of C-suite leaders finds that 82% of businesses expect innovation to act as a primary driver of their growth strategy. However, only one-third of respondents (33%) believe innovation initiatives will contribute more than 20% of total revenue over the next three years. This cautious outlook reflects broader concerns about execution effectiveness, especially since fewer than 75% of innovation launches reportedly meet all their stated goals.
Understanding Customers Continues to Be a Key Shortcoming
Despite widespread agreement that customer-centricity should underpin every stage of the innovation lifecycle, 32% of executives identify insufficient consumer understanding as a central barrier to meaningful innovation.
Notably, the solution does not lie in simply collecting more data. While 46% of companies report significant investment in primary consumer research, many still describe themselves as “insights-starved.” Two structural issues emerge from the findings: 28% cite concerns about data accuracy, while 24% point to the paradox of having abundant data but limited actionable insights. The result is an intelligence bottleneck that restricts idea generation and weakens downstream innovation outcomes.
AI Rises as a Game-Changing Catalyst
In response to these challenges, organizations are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence to enhance speed, scale, and effectiveness across the innovation pipeline. An overwhelming 83% of surveyed executives expect AI to have a “very” or “extremely impactful” effect on their innovation capabilities over the next three years.
AI adoption is already taking shape in several core areas:
- 45% use AI to search through or summarize research databases
- 45% utilize AI to draft or refine new product or service concepts
- 41% test new ideas via AI-powered simulations instead of relying solely on human participants
Collectively, the findings show that enterprises are actively reorienting around innovation-led growth, even as they navigate operational friction, rapidly evolving consumer expectations, and mounting pressure on insights functions to deliver faster, more strategic value.
Olaf Lenzmann, Chief Innovation and Product Officer at Market Logic, commented that the research underscores the urgency of building more agile, technology-enabled innovation systems. He noted that organizations seeking not only to respond to customer behavior but to anticipate it must integrate AI throughout their innovation workflows to unlock the full potential of available insights.
Richard Davies, co-founder of Alchemy-Rx, observed that innovation momentum has stalled in many organizations. He attributed this in part to inadequate consumer insight capabilities and ideation processes that produce undifferentiated launches. Davies emphasized the importance of generating a high volume of early-stage ideas and re-prioritizing insights to enable sustainable, innovation-driven growth.
Aron Galonsky of Ipsos added that decades of industry experience reinforce the central role innovation plays in business success. However, as markets accelerate and automation becomes standard practice, he cautioned that insufficient focus on innovation may hinder growth. Re-centering innovation efforts, he suggested, is essential for organizations aiming to regain competitive momentum.
A full copy of the research report is available for download online.
About Market Logic
Market Logic is a leading SaaS provider of market intelligence and insights solutions. Through its DeepSights AI technology, the company supports enterprise decision-makers with scalable, trusted insights delivered at speed. For more than 15 years, Market Logic has partnered with consumer-focused brands worldwide to transform them into insights-driven organizations. Its client portfolio includes global market leaders such as Unilever, Vodafone, Bayer, and Tesco.
About Ipsos
Ipsos is a global market research company committed to delivering accurate and actionable insights in an increasingly complex world. Combining scientific rigor, advanced technology, and sector expertise, Ipsos helps organizations achieve a deeper understanding of society, markets, and people, enabling faster and more confident decision-making.
About Alchemy-Rx
Alchemy-Rx is a growth consultancy focused on helping brands unlock practical, high-impact growth strategies. With expertise spanning strategy, marketing, innovation, and analytics, the firm partners with organizations ranging from startups to Fortune 200 companies to address critical growth challenges with actionable solutions.