Open Future Forum has published Edition 1 of The CFO AI Leverage Report, a new research series on how finance leaders are thinking about enterprise AI budgets, buying decisions, and headcount leverage.

The report focuses on one core question: is AI allowing companies to grow output without growing the team?

That question is becoming increasingly important for CFOs. AI spending is moving out of experimental budgets and into core operating lines. As that happens, finance leaders are being asked not just whether AI works, but whether it produces measurable leverage.

Edition 1 introduces the CFO AI Leverage Index, a metric designed to track how finance leaders view AI’s impact on productivity, budget allocation, and team growth.

The report also draws on Open Future Forum’s 2026 executive rooms, including finance, security, founder, marketing, and AI leadership events. The early signal is clear: AI is no longer just a technology conversation. It is becoming a finance conversation.

For CFOs, the most important AI question may not be “Can this tool do the work?” but “Can this tool help us do more without adding headcount?”

Read the full report here: The CFO AI Leverage Report.