New Survey: 86% of Finance Leaders Plan Major AI Investment by 2026 as Tropic Unveils Five Procurement Agents

Tropic launches purpose-built AI agent workforce designed to save time and money, as new survey identifies 2026 as the tipping point year for finance AI adoption
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NEW YORK, June 10, 2025 — Today, Tropic, the intelligent procurement partner, published its findings from a recent survey, showing that finance and procurement teams are preparing for a massive shift toward AI adoption, with 86% planning to implement or scale AI initiatives by 2026. This survey supports the unveiling of Tropic’s next evolution of Tropic AI: five specialized agents that work together as a unified workforce to transform how teams manage spending, contracts, and supplier relationships.

This announcement builds on Tropic's year-long AI innovation journey, which has focused on combining the power of AI with Tropic’s unrivaled army of human specialists to change procurement and spend management from a complex, disconnected process into something intuitive and powerful. The company's vision has been clear: teams don't just need AI tools, they need partners that understand the growing responsibilities and pressures finance leaders face. With 50% report they’re at the beginning of their AI transformation, Tropic's survey of 100 finance leaders reveals 2026 will be an inflection point, with nearly half of organizations already reallocating budgets from existing software tools to fund AI initiatives.

"Finance leaders aren't just talking about AI anymore. They're budgeting for it," said Russell Lester, CFO at Tropic. "Our new research shows that 53% of finance leaders expect AI to influence their 2026 budget and planning priorities and 49% plan to or have already reallocated software and budget towards AI tools. At Tropic, we've been building toward this moment for over a year. What we're announcing today represents the maturation of our AI platform into a complete workforce that actually delivers the productivity gains teams have been promised."

Operational Efficiency Drives AI Investment

The survey found that 66% of finance leaders cite operational efficiency as their primary motivation for AI investment across the business, far outpacing competitive pressure or executive mandates. However, early results remain mixed. While 73% report AI has somewhat improved their team's productivity, only 4% cite significant gains.

"There's a clear gap between AI promise and AI performance," Lester noted. "Teams know they need AI to become more effective and stay competitive, but they're struggling to implement solutions that deliver real value. We've spent the past year building and refining AI tools that actually solve procurement problems. These five agents represent the evolution of that work into a comprehensive AI workforce."

AI Agents Democratize Human Expertise at Scale

When Tropic launched, the company solved these complex procurement challenges through professional services and human expertise. But as demand grew, a scale issue emerged. While Tropic's human experts remain an integral part of the platform, the company recognized that customers needed access to this knowledge 24/7.

"We've essentially taken everything our procurement experts know and made it available as an always-on workforce," said Justin Etkin, Co-Founder and COO at Tropic. "These aren't generic AI tools. They're powered by unique human experiences and our $13B+ spend database."

Tropic's five AI agents work alongside the company's broader platform and services, addressing specific procurement challenges through specialized roles:

• Smart Request Assistant streamlines procurement requests, making it effortless for any user to initiate and track purchases
• Compliance Copilot instantly checks requests and contracts against company policies, preventing bottlenecks and out-of-policy spend
• Contract Intelligence Engine automatically extracts key contract details and answers questions about agreements in plain language
• Negotiation Navigator provides instant access to price benchmarks and supplier intelligence from over $13B in spend data
• AI Invoice Match automatically verifies invoices against contracts and requests, protecting against overpayment and fraud
  These agents are designed specifically for procurement workflows and integrate seamlessly with existing systems and require no major change management.

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"We're not building AI for the sake of having AI," said Etkin. "Over the past year, we've methodically addressed major procurement pain points with tailored solutions. The Smart Request Assistant, for example, evolved from customer feedback on Ask Tropic. Each agent solves a specific problem that wastes hours of our customers' time every week."

Proven Results Drive Adoption

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Among teams using AI today, 42% report faster process cycle times, and 30% cite cost savings. However, 47% of leaders say proven ROI remains the top requirement for scaling AI initiatives.
AI in Procurement: The Next Wave Virtual Event

While Tropic believes AI will help procurement and finance teams get ahead, the company recognizes that most teams are still at the beginning of their AI journey. To help finance leaders navigate this critical transition, Tropic is hosting a virtual event on June 25th from 1-4 pm ET, featuring additional survey findings, industry influencers and analysts, practical AI implementation guidance, customer case studies and live product demonstrations. Visit https://www.tropicapp.io/events/ai-in-procurement for more information and register for sessions.

Additional survey results:

• AI adoption is about to accelerate: While 50% report they’re at the beginning of their AI journey, only 5% report broad AI deployment today, but 86% plan to implement or scale by 2026.
• Budget realignment is underway: 61% are currently allocating less than 10% of software spend to AI but 86% expect software budgets to grow in 2026 to support AI; 49% are beginning to reallocate funds from existing tools or will in 2026.
• Efficiency is the leading driver: Operational efficiency outranks all other motivations for AI investment, cited by 66% of respondents as their driving force.
• Early use cases are tactical: AI isn’t being deployed for moonshots, it’s showing up in contract review, forecasting, and spend analysis.
• ROI is still a concern: While 73% report AI has somewhat improved their team’s productivity or decision-making, only 4% report significant gains. Given most respondents are still at the beginning of their AI journey, this makes sense and as adoption increases, so will ROI.
• Proof - not hype - is the new requirement: 47% of leaders say proven ROI is the top requirement for scaling AI initiatives.
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About Tropic:
Tropic is your intelligent procurement partner, purpose-built to help modern finance and procurement teams save time, cut costs, and drive impact. Whether you’re a solo finance leader or part of a larger team, Tropic combines AI agents and expert services to handle the procurement work you don’t have time for, from complex negotiations to renewal headaches. Powered by over $13B (and growing) in software spend intelligence, Tropic gives you unmatched visibility, automation, and negotiation leverage across your stack. We don’t just flag problems, we solve them, transforming procurement into a strategic advantage that scales with your business. Learn more at tropicapp.io and follow us on LinkedIn.