Foresight has an ownership problem. Our latest research shows that foresight is widely recognized as strategically important, yet many organizations still lack the structure, accountability and evidence needed to turn it into action.
Key highlights:
While foresight is increasingly valued, the practice has rarely been more vulnerable.
Who owns the future? The state of foresight today explores how foresight is changing amid AI, economic constraint and organizational change, and what businesses need to do next to make foresight a clearer, more commercially valuable capability. Download the report to explore:
What’s inside the report?
Foresight is increasingly being pulled toward growth, opportunity and executive decision-making. This chapter looks at why the strongest foresight teams are moving beyond simply anticipating risk, and how they are using foresight to identify where future growth could come from.
The last thing leaders need is more information. They need confidence, clarity and commercially relevant action. This chapter explores why foresight earns its place when it shapes decisions, and why proving value remains one of the practice’s biggest challenges.
Many organizations understand the importance of long-term thinking, yet short-term pressure continues to dominate. This chapter examines the tension between immediate business needs and longer-term planning, and why successful foresight depends on connecting both horizons.
AI is already changing how foresight work gets done. But as more teams use AI to summarize, synthesize and interpret information, questions of trust, provenance and validation become more important. This chapter explores why human expertise remains central to foresight’s future.
This report is based on research conducted by Foresight Factory in July 2026, through an online survey of 41 professionals working across insight, strategy, innovation, foresight and marketing functions.
Respondents represented organizations across the UK, North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific, spanning specialist, management, departmental leadership and director-level positions.
The research was designed to explore how foresight is being used today, where the practice is under pressure, and what capabilities will matter most over the next three years. While the sample is focused and directional, it offers a valuable cross-sector view from professionals actively working with foresight, strategy and future-facing decision-making.
