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Digital leaders have widened their competitive distance by 60 percent in the past three years, according to senior partner Eric Lamarre and colleagues. But tortoises have a way of catching up: to stay ahead, leaders will have to accelerate their transformations.

While last year was largely about generative AI (gen AI) pilots, this year has seen the technology driving revenue increases—most notably in supply chain and inventory management—and cost reductions (exhibit). According to senior partner Nicolai Müller, gen-AI-powered automation alone “can unleash … about $3.5 trillion to $4 trillion, which is approximately the GDP of the UK.” And the boldest organizations moved quickly: check out this case study on McKinsey’s work helping the global bank ING launch a customer-facing chatbot in only seven weeks.