PwC's AI findings highlight potential 15% uplift in global economy by 2035

New research published by PwC reveals that AI has the potential to boost global economic output by up to 15 percentage points, and in Africa by up to 4.9 percentage points, over the next decade. This would effectively add one percentage point to annual growth rates - on par with the growth increment the world began enjoying with 19th century industrialisation.

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PwC’s report, Value in Motion is based on data-driven scenario analysis which reveals that the global growth dividend from AI is not guaranteed and depends on more than just technical success – it also hinges on responsible deployment, clear governance and public and organisational trust.

In other scenarios analysed by PwC, characterised by lower trust and co-operation, the incremental boost to the global economy from AI would be more muted at 8%, or in a pessimistic scenario just 1%.

The research finds that rapid reconfiguration of the economy is already under way. PwC analysis indicates that the pressure for businesses to reinvent themselves is at some of the highest levels seen in the last 25 years across six out of nine sectors in Africa. This same research identified $150.54bn in revenues in Africa set to shift between companies in 2025 alone, even prior to the recent global increase in tariffs.

PwC’s research suggests that over the next decade, industries will reconfigure to meet human needs in new ways, leading to the formation of new ‘domains’ that cross traditional sector lines. For example, the rise of electric vehicles is bringing electricity providers, battery manufacturers, tech firms and others into the mobility domain, enabling them to create value alongside automobile manufacturers.

Dion Shango, PwC Africa chief eexecutive officer said: "As the structure of the economy transforms, value will increasingly come from organisations that can connect the dots across traditional industry boundaries. By focusing on evolving customer needs and using technology to dramatically change the way business operates, business leaders can unlock a step change in growth.”

Climate impact

PwC’s analysis shows that while AI is set to accelerate growth, the costs of physical climate threats will impose economic constraints. PwC’s economic modelling suggests that physical climate impacts could leave the African economy over 12% (globally: 7%) smaller in 2035 in all scenarios than it would have been otherwise.

Increased AI adoption is expected to lead to increased energy use by data centres. However, modest use of AI to drive energy efficiency could offset this increased use of energy. PwC estimates that the energy use and emissions impact of AI would be neutral if each additional percentage point of AI use led to innovations which cut energy intensity by just 0.1% globally.

Evolving. Empowering. Protecting

As technology and other megatrends continue to transform the economy, PwC is unveiling a set of actions it is taking to help clients unlock the value of enterprise AI at scale, including:

PwC’s agent OS: PwC’s agent OS enables a structural shift in how enterprises can orchestrate AI at scale, seamlessly connecting and scaling intelligent agents into business-ready workflows up to 10x faster than traditional methods. As well as offering this to clients, the network is also leveraging it within its own processes, with hundreds of AI agents deployed for specific tasks integrated into workflows to deliver productivity gains across tax, assurance and advisory services to clients.

AI expertise: Each month, tens of thousands of PwC people are taking part in regularly updated training programmes through the Network AI Academy. Already, 291,000 PwC partners and staff have taken part in structured AI training globally.

New technology alliances: Since the start of December, PwC has unveiled new collaborations with existing alliance partners: AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft and Oracle. This adds to PwC’s existing extensive set of alliance activities, which also includes Adobe, Anthropic, Guidewire, OpenAI, SAP, Salesforce and Workday among others.

The network is also extending its ability to rapidly translate industry specific insights into real business model impact for clients, including through a new release of its CIO 100 Award winning GenAI tool, ChatPwC, which now includes a broader range of proprietary data, methodologies and research to give every client team access to the best of PwC’s insight.

Value in Motion and other proprietary research is translated into reality by Industry Edge - PwC's portfolio that underpins deep industry insights with supporting business models, processes, technology & data models, and AI accelerators to deliver industry-specific transformation.

A new intelligent learning platform has been rolled out across the network. It combines a skills framework, AI-powered learning recommendations and a conversational coaching experience into a single, unified and personalised learning experience.

PwC has also updated its brand, visual and verbal identity to better reflect the role it plays for clients: bringing expertise and technology to help them build, sustain and accelerate momentum. Changes to PwC’s visual identity include new imagery and an updated logo with a new ‘momentum mark’ which signifies how PwC comes together with clients to drive them forward.

Michal Kotze, Africa Clients and Markets leader at PwC, said: "For 175 years, PwC has been constantly evolving so we can provide the capabilities our clients need. By evolving our capabilities and who we are as a business, we can help our clients build the momentum they need to create value, build trust and face the future with optimism.”