A new study from MIT and McKinsey research found that artificial intelligence (AI) is paying off faster than ever in manufacturing and operations. However, the companies leading the way are pulling further ahead than others can keep up, leaving many companies behind.

When OpenAI’s ChatGPT launched in November 2022, it opened people’s eyes to the power of generative AI. Since then, businesses have been racing to capture part of the estimated $2.6 to $4.4 trillion in potential value that can be generated from AI.

How Companies Are Using AI

AI isn’t just for chatbots—it’s helping companies improve manufacturing, back-office work, and overall operations.

For example, one global pharmaceutical company built a generative AI tool to check supplier invoices. This company spends over $4 billion a year on outside products and services, with complex contracts involving discounts, multiple currencies, and inflation adjustments.

The AI tool was able to:

• Read invoice details from PDFs with 95% accuracy
• Identify over $10 million in lost value within four weeks
• Find recurring costs not covered by contracts, giving the company a chance to negotiate better deals

The Growing Gap Between Leaders and Others

While many companies are testing AI, not everyone is successful in utilizing it. The study shows a widening gap between companies finding success with AI and those that aren’t. Companies leading in AI adoption are seeing results 3.8 times better than those who haven’t adopted the technology. The fact is many businesses struggle to integrate AI into their processes or scale it across operations.

The researchers analyzed over 100 companies and interviewed 15 as part of the study. From that they were able to determine four key factors that separate leaders in AI from the rest:

1. Executive support – Senior leaders stay involved and committed.
2. Strong partnerships – Working with the right vendors and experts.
3. Cross-team collaboration – Breaking down silos between departments.
4. Data investments – Building solid, reliable data systems.

Challenges With AI Adoption

Even top companies face hurdles when using A. The most common struggles are:

• Measuring Return on Investment (ROI): It’s hard to calculate financial returns on new technology.
• Limited resources: Projects often require more time and money than expected.
• Uncertain results: Some “shiny” tools, including AI, don’t solve real problems.

Still, leaders are finding success. In some cases, companies are reporting returns up to five times higher than the cost of their projects within the next five years.

Lessons From AI Leaders

One multi-national manufacturer wanted to use AI to improve its advanced process control (APC) systems. The first attempt failed because the external partner didn’t understand the company’s unique manufacturing process. Instead of giving up, they built their own AI system that ran 10 times faster and cost 10 times to operate.

This story highlights an important trend: successful companies move quickly, experiment, and learn as they go. They don’t always wait for perfect ROI calculations before acting.

Partnerships Matter

Even top-performing companies don’t do it all alone:

• 67% of AI leaders work with outside partners.
• Only 50% of lower-performing companies do the same.

However, the nature of partnerships is shifting:

• Collaboration with universities and start-ups has dropped from 83% to 50%.
• Leaders now rely more on consulting firms, vendors, and industry partners.
• The market for AI support is maturing, moving from experimental approaches to mainstream solutions.

Shorter Payback Periods

The good news: AI investments are paying off faster. In earlier studies of AI, leading companies saw returns in 12–18 months, while others took 18–24 months, but now as the technology has become more advanced, those same groups are seeing payback in just 6-12 months.

Companies that involve executives, build strong partnerships, connect data teams with operations, and create reliable data systems are likely to see increased performance gains in the future.

Key Takeaway

AI is transforming manufacturing and operations—but success isn’t guaranteed. Companies that invest in leadership support, partnerships, collaboration, and data are pulling ahead quickly. For everyone else, the message is clear: adapt now, or risk being left behind.