PUBLIC STUDY B2B Europe 2026

Beyond the code: How AI is redefining the software industry

Software leaders, boards and investors keep asking the same questions. Is software becoming easier to replicate? Will engineering teams shrink? How is AI changing software economics?

AI is rewriting the rules of software.

For the third year in a row, EY-Parthenon asked Europe's software CTOs directly. This year's benchmark goes past opinion to show where AI is really moving value, risk and talent across the industry.

Sander van Weele

Partner at EY-Parthenon, Software Strategy Group

Charles Gouiran

Account executive at Potloc

Survey details.

  • 400

    European software CTOs surveyed

  • 13

    European countries

  • 43

    minutes average completion time

  • 25

    days of fieldwork

The Potloc advantage.

  • ChartLineUp

    A benchmark that grows every year.

    Potloc has fielded all three waves of EY-Parthenon's CTO study. The sample has grown from 300 CTOs in 9 countries in 2024 to 400 CTOs in 13 countries this year. Keeping the targeting consistent lets EY-Parthenon compare results year on year, like the shift in how developers use AI tools between 2025 and 2026.

  • Clock

    Senior respondents who stayed for 43 minutes.

    Combining phone (CATI) and online (CAWI) interviews with Potloc's survey optimization kept a hard-to-reach C-suite audience engaged through a 43-minute average completion. Quotas by company size and turnover gave the right mix of company sizes, ownership types and verticals.

  • MagnifyingGlass

    From global trends to granular analysis.

    Potloc's dashboard gave EY-Parthenon preliminary insights, with the ability to identify meaningful trends early. A detailed data export, in the team's desired format, then supported granular analysis, including their split of AI-native and incumbent software companies.

Strong opinions were easy to find. Reliable evidence was harder. Answering these questions meant reaching 400 CTOs across Europe, with the right mix of company sizes, ownership types and verticals. Potloc gave us access to that specific group of respondents at scale, allowing us to ground our analysis in evidence rather than anecdote.
Sander van Weele BW
Sander van Weele Partner at EY-Parthenon, Software Strategy Group
eyparthenon

Key trends.

1

Features are the easiest part of software to copy.

ey_software-CTO_graph1B
ey_software-CTO_graph1A

CTOs see reporting and analytics (53%) and user interfaces (52%) as the areas most exposed to AI replication. Their budgets reflect it: deepening workflow ownership or integrations is the most-funded response (58% ranked it top three), ahead of shipping AI features faster (53%).

2

Developer AI is shifting from writing code to checking it.

ey_software-CTO_graph2B
CBS - EY - CTO Wave 3

Code generation as a use case for developer AI tools fell 24 points year on year to 56%, while testing rose 14 points to 38%. QA and validation is now the most-cited bottleneck in the development process (54% top three), well ahead of coding itself (22%).

3

Monetization is the biggest gap, and the lowest priority.

ey_software-CTO_graph3B
ey_software-CTO_graph3A

34% of CTOs name commercial model and monetization as the area where they're furthest behind peers, more than any other area. Yet pricing and packaging redesign sits last on the 2026 agenda, picked by just 21% as a top-five priority.

Our team.

Charles Gouiran
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
charles.gouiran@potloc.com

Kickstart your next thought leadership survey.

With unmatched sample quality, time-saving analysis tools, and dedicated research experts at your disposal, Potloc is the go-to survey partner for PE & consulting firms.

Cover of the EY-Parthenon x Potloc report Beyond the code: How AI is redefining the software industry, based on 400 European software CTOs, 2026.
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