Good morning. AI is escaping the screen, and that should be setting off both alarms and opportunities in the finance function.
Deloitte’s new CFO Guide to Tech Trends 2026 explores how finance leaders can think strategically about emerging technologies and embrace what’s possible, which in turn elevates their function’s value and helps shape what’s next for their entire organization.
One tech trend on the rise is AI-enabled robotics. AI is no longer confined to dashboards and copilots. “Physical AI,” which is the convergence of AI with robotics, sensors, and real-world systems, marks a turning point. As Deloitte notes, intelligence is becoming “embodied” in factories, warehouses, and supply chains, where autonomous systems can optimize operations in real time. For example, BMW is testing humanoid robots to handle tasks that traditional industrial robots cannot perform, according to Deloitte. Meanwhile, the Bank of America Institute projects that the material costs of a humanoid robot could fall from $35,000 in 2025 to between $13,000 and $17,000 by 2035.
Why should CFOs care about AI-driven robots? According to Deloitte’s report, they directly affect both costs and ROI. Adopting physical AI can reshape products, operations, and supply chains, influencing everything from manufacturing to quality control. Finance leaders must ensure these changes are accurately reflected in KPIs and financial reporting to drive competitive advantage. At the same time, CFOs need to strengthen how they measure ROI in a hybrid human–AI workforce and invest in upskilling finance teams to understand and manage the financial implications of this technology.
But physical AI is just one piece of a broader transformation. Deloitte highlights a surge in agentic AI, systems that don’t just analyze but act, alongside a resurgence in hardware investment, as AI workloads demand specialized infrastructure. These shifts introduce new cost structures, including rising energy consumption and capital intensity, placing CFOs at the center of critical trade-off decisions.
The finance function’s role is expanding from measuring performance to shaping the technological bets that will determine it.
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
