Third quarter earnings season produced a split that budget owners should study. As CNBC's roundup of how AI showed up in results(opens in a new tab) lays out, Santander said its AI initiatives generated 194 million euros ($216 million) in business value in the first nine months of 2026, and its CFO said the effect runs through both revenue and costs. Novartis's chief executive said this was the first quarter he had seen AI improve the P&L on a tangible basis, but gave no amount. Standard Chartered's CFO said AI appears everywhere across the business, also with no amount. Carlsberg's chief executive said the brewer is not yet seeing benefits at scale.
The Santander number did not appear from nowhere. In June the bank set a target of more than €1 billion in AI business value over 2026 to 2028(opens in a new tab) and reported €35 million for the first quarter. Its nine month results presentation(opens in a new tab) now prints the running total next to that target, with a written definition: incremental revenue, cost savings and lower loan-loss provisions from its data and AI initiatives. A target, a definition, and a figure that moves each quarter is what lets a market, or a CFO, hold a program to account.
The pressure behind this is spending. The same CNBC piece notes that Microsoft, Amazon, Google and Meta are expected to spend about $700 billion on AI infrastructure this year. Investors are now asking every large company, not only the hyperscalers, what that spending is returning. A chief executive who says AI is everywhere but cannot size it is inviting the next question.
The practical lesson is about method, not size. €194 million is small against a bank of Santander's scale. What makes it useful is that it is a single figure, defined in advance, tracked against a published multi-year goal, and spoken by the CFO rather than the technology team.
For the CAIO and CFO. Agree one definition of AI business value, covering revenue, cost and risk lines, with finance this quarter. Set a multi-year target against it, and report the figure on the same cadence as the rest of the P&L, so the first time it is questioned you already have three quarters of history.
Action items
Santander reported €194 million in AI business value for the first nine months of 2026, tracked against a published €1 billion goal. Novartis, Standard Chartered and Carlsberg discussed AI on their calls without putting a figure on it.
For the CAIO and CFO
Agree one definition of AI business value with finance, set a multi-year target, and report it every quarter.
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Also worth knowing
- CNBCCompanies promised AI gains: here's how the payoff showed up in earnings(opens in a new tab)
Santander put a €194 million figure on AI value in nine months; Novartis, Standard Chartered and Carlsberg spoke about AI without sizing it. Expect your own board to ask which camp you are in.
- Banco Santander (SEC Form 6-K)Banco Santander 9M'26 earnings presentation(opens in a new tab)
The source document: €194 million of AI business value in nine months, defined as incremental revenue, cost savings and lower loan-loss provisions. A ready template for your own AI value definition.
- SecurityWeekChainalysis Discloses Data Breach Following AI-Driven Cyberattack(opens in a new tab)
An outside actor using what Chainalysis calls offensive agentic techniques reached its systems and internal tools, and accessed the names and email addresses of users on its platform. Even a blockchain investigations firm is now reporting agent-driven intrusions.