At the 2026 Inclusion·Outer Temple Conference, the Shanghai Advanced Institute of Finance at Shanghai Jiao Tong University and the Ant Group Research Institute jointly released the "2026 Top Ten Trends Insight on Enterprise-Level Agent Commercial Evolution." The report argues that the commercial focus of enterprise-grade agents is shifting from demonstrating model capabilities to delivering tangible business value, with pricing models transitioning from traditional subscription-based accounts to charges based on workload or even final business outcomes.
Wu Yujun, the head of the report's research group and an adjunct professor at the institute, pointed out that 2026 marks the inflection point where agents move from "capability competition" to "commercial closed-loop competition." Going forward, digital competition among enterprises will center on building human-machine collaborative digital workforce systems capable of autonomous execution and continuous evolution. He emphasized that decision-makers and investors should seize the commercialization window in 2026, pivoting from an arms race in computing power to workflow embedding and the accumulation of digital assets.
Regarding pricing models, the report suggests that as agents begin to complete enterprise tasks end-to-end, vendors can more concretely measure how much revenue agents help clients generate or how much cost they save. Consequently, enterprise budgets for procuring agents may shift from traditional IT budgets to business budgets, with billing bases gradually moving from user seats to workload and ultimate business results.
Delivery methods are also undergoing transformation. The report predicts that standalone agent applications will gradually decline, with agents being increasingly embedded into existing enterprise business systems and high-frequency work entry points. Due to significant process variations across industries and companies, enterprise-level agents cannot rely entirely on standardized software delivery. Vendors need to go beyond modular products by deploying field deployment engineers (FDEs) on-site to assist with business process analysis and system implementation.
The report contends that the competitive focus of enterprise-grade agents will no longer be limited to foundational models. The orchestration layer that connects models, enterprise data, and business processes, along with the ability to convert customized project experience into reusable modules, may emerge as new value-adding commercial segments.
The report also highlights differing commercial and valuation logics for enterprise agents in China and the U.S. In the American market, valuation is often based on the revenue scale generated by replacing high-cost labor, while the Chinese market places more emphasis on how agents enhance industrial efficiency and business value. As a result, Chinese enterprise agents may follow a development path where "modular products and deep delivery run in parallel."
As agents gain permissions to query data, invoke systems, and execute business operations, security governance will also evolve from an add-on feature to essential enterprise infrastructure. The report anticipates that identity authentication, permission management, and behavior auditing mechanisms for agents will become prerequisites for their integration into core business systems.