More than two-thirds of investment managers prominently using AI to support front office, SimCorp study reveals

Key findings:

• Annual survey of 200 buy-side executives shows significant increase in AI adoption from year-earlier period.
• For the first time in three years, innovation has become the leading driver of technology and operations investments.
• Firms consider vendor stability the top priority when selecting third-party AI solutions for their investment management.
• Belief that private markets and alternative investments are poised for technological innovation has risen sharply over the past 12 months.

Copenhagen – January 15, 2026 – 70 percent of buy-side firms are successfully employing Artificial Intelligence to support their front office, according to a new global study commissioned by SimCorp, a global leader in financial technology.

This finding marks a significant increase from last year’s report, which showed only about 10 percent of respondents were actively exploring AI tools. At the time, 75 percent recognized AI’s potential, but they still needed guidance on how to integrate it.

These findings, published in the 2026 InvestOps Report, draw on responses from 200 executives at asset managers, pension funds and insurance companies worldwide. The respondents were surveyed by WBR Insights to identify their technology priorities and challenges heading into 2026.

“AI adoption has dramatically shifted from pilots to business-critical applications in the front office,” said Peter Sanderson, Chief Executive Officer, SimCorp. “The advancements in AI can deliver the most value for investment professionals to enhance decision-making and efficiency when it is underpinned by a centrally governed and unified data layer.”

The new report also finds that consolidating technology vendors and platforms (58%) and modernizing technology architecture and data infrastructure (54%) are the top technology initiatives for buy-side firms - both are essential for scaling AI, automating investment workflows and simplifying tech stacks.

“I’m not surprised to see 58 percent of firms in this survey choosing vendor and platform consolidation as a technology initiative,” added Sanderson. “It's the first step toward bringing all their data together so they can have better control, trust their information, see their entire portfolio clearly, and use AI to gain insights.”

Innovation overtakes operational efficiency as top strategic technology priority

For the first time in three years, achieving competitive differentiation through innovation (55%) has surpassed operational efficiency (33%) and controlling operating costs (44%) as the leading driver of technology and operations investments for 2026.

With AI adoption maturing across investment managers, vendor stability (57%) ranks as the most important criterion when evaluating AI solutions for their investment management - ahead of features. As proprietary data often flows into AI models, firms require that vendors have robust data governance and cybersecurity in place and are seeking partners capable of supporting these requirements.

The top factors when evaluating AI solutions for investment management were:

1. Vendor stability (57%) - Established providers with enterprise support.
2. Innovation access (54%) - Early beta features for competitive advantage.
3. Analytical flexibility (47%) - Probabilistic outputs for research and insights.
4. Proven ROI (45%) - Demonstrated return metrics before scaling deployments.
5. Governance framework (40%) - Comprehensive documentation and regulatory alignment.
6. Regulatory compliance (35%) - Deterministic, auditable outputs for compliance use cases.
7. Investment appetite (24%) - Premium pricing for advanced capabilities.

Looking ahead, respondents ranked AI, generative AI, and advanced analytics (72%) as the area offering the greatest opportunity for technological innovation. Another area poised for innovation is within alternative investments where operational complexity and fragmented data often result in limited automation. Over the past 12 months, the number of respondents who believe private markets & alternative investments offer the greatest opportunity for technological innovation has grown by 24 percentage points, reaching 51 percent in 2026 compared to 27 percent in 2025.

As private market allocations continue to rise, firms that invest in best-in-class technology capabilities for alternatives can gain operational leverage through higher straight-through processing rates, allowing them to focus on evaluating the best investment opportunities rather than manual reconciliations.

To that end, SimCorp launched SimCorp Alternatives last year, a comprehensive offering designed to serve the needs of all alternative investment firms. It builds on SimCorp’s existing alternatives offering, already trusted by some of the world’s largest asset owners.

To learn more about the findings of the 2026 InvestOps Report and to access the full report, click here.

Survey methodology

The 2026 Global InvestOps Report surveyed 200 senior executives and operations leaders from asset managers, insurers, and pension funds across North America, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific, each managing at least USD 10 billion in AUM. Respondents included C-suite representatives and other senior leaders. The survey was conducted by WBR Insights, an independent research firm.