Gartner’s survey of B2B buyers finds 45% used generative AI in a recent purchase, mostly for vendor and product research, while 69% turned to a sales rep to validate what the AI told them. The rep’s job is moving from information to confidence.
What the article says
Demand Gen Report’s James Hickey summarizes Gartner’s May 2026 findings. Buyers were 28 percentage points more likely to say a sales rep helped them advance the purchase than generative AI did, 32 points more likely to say a rep made them feel confident in the decision, and 39 points more likely to say a rep understood their needs. On accuracy, buyers rate the two sources about evenly: 51% expect misleading information from GenAI, 49% from reps. Gartner projects that 95% of sellers’ research workflows will begin with AI by 2027, up from under 20% in 2024, and finds that sales organizations prioritizing AI upskilling are 2.4 times more likely to report strong revenue growth.
Why it matters at the top of the house
The research phase is leaving your control. The buyer’s first conversation about your product is now with a model reading your website, your distributors’ listings, and your competitors’ content. The rep enters later, with a narrower job: confirm, reassure, close. Two implications for a president. What the AI finds about you had better be accurate and current. And the reps you keep had better be good at the confidence part, because that is the part buyers still pay attention to.
Source: Demand Gen Report, “Gartner: AI Is Reshaping B2B Buying, but Human Sellers Still Close the Confidence Gap,” by James Hickey, May 26, 2026. Research: Gartner. The Marketing Table shares the link and a note on why it matters; the article and its copyright belong to the publisher.
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