The Future Has Arrived: The Second Global Research on AI in Project Management

In this episode, Ricardo announces the release of the second global research on AI in project management, co-authored with Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez. Compared to their first study two years ago, AI has moved from experimentation to mainstream adoption. The 2025 report, based on insights from 870 professionals in 97 countries, shows that AI familiarity has doubled, and over two-thirds now use AI tools daily. Nearly half of organizations report cost reductions, and 25% achieved over $250,000 ROI. The greatest benefits appear in scaling, risk management, and forecasting. Barriers have shifted from technical to cultural and ethical. By 2028, 42% of organizations expect AI copilots to manage most projects. AI won’t replace humans but enhance leadership and decision-making. Download the free report at pmairevolution.com.

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Episode transcript

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Hi everyone, here is Ricardo Vargas, and this is the 5 Minutes Podcast. And today, I am very excited to share that Antonio Nieto Rodriguez and I have just released the second global research on artificial intelligence in project management. We started two years ago when we released our first study, and at that time, AI in project management was still at the experimental stage. And now in 2025, the landscape has completely changed. AI is becoming mainstream. Our new research includes insights from over 870 professionals in 97 countries. And the results are striking. The first one, the familiarity with AI in project management, has doubled in just two years. More than two-thirds of the professionals are now using AI tools, and what used to be pilots and experiments are now embedded in daily project work. Second, AI tools are driving real and measurable impact. Nearly half of the organizations report cost reductions. And what is really impressive? 1 in 4 has already achieved over $250,000 in ROI from AI-enabled project management. The biggest gains are seen in scaling, risk management, and forecasting. And these are areas where AI helps teams to predict, to plan, and to decide faster and more precisely. Another fascinating finding is how the barriers are shifting. Two years ago, the main challenges were technical. People did not know how to use AI tools. And today, the real barriers are cultural and ethical. Resistance from staff and concerns about bias now outweigh the lack of technical expertise. This shows that technology is ready, but our mindset and governance are still needed to catch up. And perhaps the most exciting insight, and for me, one of the most impressive, is that by 2028, 42% of organizations expect that more than half of their project portfolios will be managed with AI Copilots. This doesn't mean AI replacing humans, but it means that project managers will focus even more on leadership, ethics, and decision-making, while AI handles repetitive and analytical tasks. And our message with this report is clear: AI is no longer an option in project management. It's becoming a core capability, and those who embrace it now will lead the next transformation in our profession. And this report, we did it with a lot of care. It's a Creative Commons license, so you are more than free and welcome to share it, to use it in your presentations, and to help us spread the word. You can download it for free at pmairevolution.com. So please help us to promote this report. Use this report, make your statements on some of the questions. Because what we need to do is to make sure that we improve our maturity and our understanding as project managers about the impacts of AI in our profession. So, I hope you enjoyed this episode and see you next week with another 5 Minutes Podcast.

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