African business leaders are backing artificial intelligence (AI) and talent development as the twin engines of resilience and growth. This is according to the KPMG 2025 Africa CEO Outlook released this week.

Despite persistent geopolitical and economic uncertainty, the report found that 79% of African chief executive officers (CEOs) remain confident in their companies’ prospects, up sharply from 64% last year.

The study, which surveyed more than 130 CEOs across the continent, shows that 69% have already revised their growth strategies to adapt to new market realities. Investment priorities have shifted decisively toward digital transformation, with 45% of respondents identifying cybersecurity as their top focus, followed by 41% prioritising AI integration, and 34% backing technology innovation.

Fourteen percent of African CEOs plan to allocate more than one-fifth of their annual budgets to AI, compared with 26% globally. Yet 96% cite data readiness as a major challenge to implementation.

KPMG South Africa’s CEO designate, Joelene Pierce, said the challenge was not enthusiasm but infrastructure. “To deploy and scale AI, organisations must weigh building, buying, or partnering,” she noted, adding that success depends on scalability and governance.

Workforce transformation has emerged as another defining theme. Eighty-one percent of African CEOs believe that upskilling staff in AI will directly affect business performance, while 88% expect to expand their headcount in the coming year.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) commitments also remain central. Seventy-nine percent of CEOs expressed confidence in navigating regulatory diversity, and nearly half are aligning sustainability goals with core business strategy.

Taken together, the findings portray a continent cautiously optimistic about the future; anchoring its next growth cycle not in commodities, but in code and capability.