Peter Smith
⬤ The conversation around AI is changing fast. Instead of talking about smarter chatbots or incremental updates, people are now focused on when AI will actually start doing real work. Many in the industry see 2026 as the year this shift happens—when AI systems begin handling meaningful tasks across different sectors. The driving force isn't better conversation tools, but AI agents and robots that can complete entire workflows from start to finish.
⬤ What's making this possible is the rise of autonomous AI agents that can manage tasks without constant human oversight. At the same time, robotics is moving beyond test labs into actual factories and industrial sites. Improvements in reliability, better spatial reasoning, smarter on-device assistants, and world models that help AI understand and navigate physical spaces are all coming together to make AI's presence more visible and practical in daily operations.
⬤ This represents a fundamental shift in how AI fits into the economy. Rather than just assisting or experimenting, AI systems are increasingly ready to take over routine office work and support physical labor through automation. Growing confidence in AI's dependability, combined with better planning and execution capabilities, is enabling large-scale deployment that actually matters.
⬤ The real significance of 2026 isn't just about technology—it's about perception. When robots are visibly working on factory floors and AI agents are quietly managing complex workflows, artificial intelligence stops being a futuristic concept and becomes part of everyday reality. This transition will likely reshape productivity expectations, change labor market dynamics, and fundamentally alter how markets view AI's role in driving future economic growth.
Peter Smith
