Archive · 20 Sep 2026
McKinsey Finds Agentic AI Productivity Declines At 30% Companies
A McKinsey report studied how companies use agentic AI tools for software development.
These tools can perform coding tasks with limited human direction.
However, nearly 30% of companies saw productivity go down after adopting them.
In one study, the amount of coding increased a lot, but the number of completed product releases increased much less.
This shows that writing more code does not always create more useful products.
Many developers also worry that AI tools are not accurate.
Investment in companies developing these tools has grown very quickly.
The report says companies need organized processes and developer trust to gain value from agentic AI.
Productivity fell in nearly 30% of companies after teams adopted agentic AI tools.
One study found coding activity rose 180%, while shipped releases increased only 30%.
Forty-six percent of developers distrust AI accuracy, compared with 33% who trust it.
Equity investment in agentic software companies exceeded $61 billion in the first half of 2026.
Relevant job postings increased 221% between 2024 and 2025, according to the report.
- Who
- Companies using agentic AI tools and developers worldwide, according to McKinsey.
- What
- The report found that productivity declined in nearly 30% of companies using agentic AI tools.
- When
- The findings were reported in McKinsey’s Technology Trends Outlook 2026; investment figures include the first half of 2026.
- Where
- The findings concern enterprise deployments and developers worldwide; the article was datelined New Delhi, India.
- Why
- The report attributed difficulties to weak structural discipline, uneven integration, and limited developer trust in AI outputs.
- Productivity decline
- Nearly 30% of companies saw productivity fall after adopting agentic AI tools.
- Coding activity
- One study recorded a 180% increase in coding activity.
- Shipped releases
- Shipped releases increased by only 30% in that study.
- Developer trust
- Forty-six percent of developers distrusted AI accuracy, 33% trusted it, and 3% highly trusted outputs.
- Equity investment
- Investment grew from negligible levels through 2023 to about $5 billion in 2025 and more than $61 billion in the first half of 2026.
- Job postings
- Relevant job postings rose 221% between 2024 and 2025.
- Other technology investment
- AI infrastructure spending doubled in one year, while energy technologies attracted nearly $200 billion during 2025.