The real test for physical AI starts after the pilot

The next test for AI is not whether it can produce an impressive pilot. It is whether it can work reliably, every day, in the messy and high-stakes conditions of the physical world.

Companies are prepared to spend. BCG’s 2026 AI Radar found that corporations expect to more than double AI spending this year, from 0.8% to approximately 1.7% of revenue. But the value is not keeping pace. According to PwC’s 2026 AI Performance Study, 74% of AI’s economic value is being captured by just 20% of organizations.

The constraint is no longer ambition or budget. It is execution.

CMO at Samsara.

For physical AI, that challenge is especially acute. Unlike a tool that drafts an email or summarizes a document, physical AI operates where decisions affect safety, uptime, service delivery and cost. Moving it beyond the pilot phase requires more than a capable model.

Organizations need to choose...

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