Transforming Consumer Industries in the Age of AI 2025

Preface In 2024, the World Economic Forum’s Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution launched a cross- industry initiative called the AI Transformation of Industries. As an active participant, the Consumer Industries community undertook an initiative called the AI Transformation of Industries – Consumer Industries Deep Dive, with Accenture as its knowledge partner. During the 2024 Annual Meeting in Davos, the chief executive officers of the Consumer Industries Governors community championed this effort, asking a pivotal question: How can industry leaders drive growth and transformation in the age of artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI (genAI) responsibly, benefiting both business and society? Fast forward to today, and the robust results of this initiative continue to emerge, reflecting a period of rapid and profound change. The insights presented in this white paper capture a point in time in this fast-evolving environment, delivering a forward- thinking perspective. They stem from extensive primary research conducted in the second half of 2024, including interviews with executives driving AI-powered programmes of change across their organizations, and workshops with more than 70 companies. They also draw on secondary research from a diverse group of stakeholders, including consumer industries (agribusiness, consumer goods, retail) and related ecosystems such as technology, academia and government. Together, they provide actionable roadmaps for the strategies needed to transform value chains completely using AI technologies, elevating consumer experiences and ultimately enhancing lives. They additionally highlight critical opportunities for collective action to unlock AI’s full potential responsibly, by grounding transformative change in trust. The urgency of pursuing these strategies and seizing these opportunities is clear. Consumer adoption of genAI is expected to lead to the most significant shift in purchasing decisions in decades. Companies that reinvent themselves with AI technologies, including genAI, looking beyond incremental improvements and cost reductions, will emerge as performance frontrunners. These organizations will also establish a new blueprint, setting norms for how people collaborate with intelligent machines, redefine roles and approach employee recruitment and development, as well as how they serve customers, consumers and communities. On behalf of the Forum’s AI Transformation of Industries – Consumer Industries Deep Dive initiative team, the authors extend their sincere appreciation to everyone who contributed to this paper. This includes the Forum and Accenture teams, as well as all participants and Forum partners who shared their thoughts through interviews and during workshops.Transforming Consumer Industries in the Age of AI February 2025 Transforming Consumer Industries in the Age of AI 4