Janus Henderson Investors today released the findings of its 2026 Investor Survey, which explores investor perceptions of artificial intelligence (AI). The research reveals that while more than half of investors (61%) expect AI to have a positive long-term impact on markets, nine out of 10 investors have at least some concerns about investing in AI.

The most common investor concern is that AI may not deliver on expectations (28%), followed by bias, misuse or insufficient safeguards (24%), and the risk that AI investments may be overvalued (19%).

Two-thirds of investors (67%) are concerned about a potential AI bubble or AI-driven market correction in the near term. However, over a longer horizon, sentiment becomes more positive: 46% of investors expect AI to have a modest positive impact on market returns over the next five years, while a smaller but more optimistic segment (15%) anticipates a major positive impact. Notably, this strongest conviction skews younger – 31% of millennials expect outsized returns, compared with 14% of Gen X and just 8% of Boomers+.

“At Janus Henderson, we view artificial intelligence as a powerful enabler—one that must be approached with a disciplined client-centric lens. We are investing meaningfully to accelerate our AI transformation across our teams to enhance how we work and deliver for clients,” said Ali Dibadj, chief executive officer of Janus Henderson Investors.

“AI scepticism is understandable, but investors risk failing to distinguish between valuation noise and long-term structural change,” said Denny Fish, portfolio manager on the Global Technology and Innovation Team at Janus Henderson Investors.

“There will be no bigger secular theme than AI in our lifetime. But investors need patience and discipline, because while AI will create massive winners over time, it will also expose meaningful losers along the way. We believe this bifurcation will create opportunities for active managers.”

While AI adoption is growing, barriers exist that limit its role in shaping investment decisions, according to the survey. Investors’ top five barriers to using AI for investment purposes include: concern that AI recommendations may be biased or conflicted (75%); concerns about data privacy or security (74%); preference for traditional methods (e.g., advisors or personal research (73%); lack of trust in AI-driven recommendations (72%); and discomfort about judging whether AI advice is reliable (70%).

Investors seek transparency from advisers using AI

The vast majority of investors (87%) said they would feel “good” or “neutral” about their financial advisor using AI to create educational collateral to share with them.  However, investors are less comfortable with advisors using AI for more personal activities, as 40% say they would be upset if their advisor used AI for automatically responding to texts and emails, and one-third of respondents (33%) report they would be upset if their advisor used AI for investment recommendations.

Investors want transparency and accountability if their adviser uses AI: 85% said they feel their adviser is ultimately responsible for AI-generated advice or materials, and 79% said they would be upset if their adviser used AI without disclosing it.  Notably, just 33% of investors said their adviser has discussed with them how they use AI in their practice.