What did Gartner find about B2B buyers and AI in 2026?
Gartner found that 69% of B2B buyers prefer to validate AI-generated insights with sales reps. Gartner, Inc. published the figure on 20 May 2026 (press release) and presented it at its CSO & Sales Leader Conference in Las Vegas, held 19 to 20 May 2026.
The data comes from a survey of 645 B2B buyers conducted from August through September 2025, so the answers reflect buyers' views in August and September 2025. The release does not say which countries, industries or company sizes the buyers came from. These are the numbers it reports:
| Finding (Gartner survey of 645 B2B buyers, Aug to Sep 2025) | Share or number |
|---|---|
| Prefer to validate AI-generated insights with sales reps | 69% |
| Prefer a completely digital, self-service buying experience | 70% |
| Prefer a sales rep-free experience | 67% |
| More likely to encounter misleading information from GenAI | 51% |
| More likely to encounter misleading information from a sales rep | 49% |
| Used GenAI during a recent purchase, primarily to gather information on vendors and products | 45% |
| Information sources used during a recent purchase | Seven, on average |
Read together, the numbers suggest a buyer who researches alone, with AI as one of about seven sources, and then wants a person to confirm what they found.
Do B2B buyers want sales reps or not?
Most say they would rather buy without one, and most also want one to check what AI told them. In the same survey, 67% preferred a rep-free experience and 70% preferred buying entirely through digital self-service, yet 69% preferred to validate AI-generated insights with a rep. Those preferences sit side by side in one group of 645 buyers.
Robert Blaisdell, VP Analyst and Chief of Research in the Gartner Sales practice, put it this way: "Buyers still turn to sales reps to validate AI-generated insights, and support decision-making at critical moments in the journey."
The release names three points where reps remain the most important information source (the notes after each are our reading):
- Researching a business problem or need. The buyer is still working out what is wrong and whether it is worth fixing.
- Identifying a preferred supplier and securing internal support. The buyer has a favourite and needs to convince colleagues.
- Finalising the purchase. The buyer needs terms, risks and details confirmed before signing.
Gartner describes the seller's role as shifting from the primary source of information to a source of validation and confidence at key points. Its advice to sales leaders: rather than maximising rep involvement at every stage, focus sellers where they add the greatest unique value. For a small team with one founder selling, that is useful. You don't need to be present for the whole journey. You need to be easy to reach, and worth reaching, at those three points.
Why do buyers double-check AI answers?
Gartner's release does not say why, though its figures on misleading information offer a clue. In Gartner's survey, 51% of buyers said they are more likely to encounter misleading information from GenAI, and 49% said the same about sales reps. Neither source wins the buyer's trust outright.
That has two consequences for anyone doing outreach:
- The buyer may already have an AI summary of you. With 45% using GenAI mainly to gather information on vendors and products, your first message can land after an assistant has described your product, your pricing or your competitors, rightly or wrongly.
- Your own claims get checked too. Almost half of buyers (49%) say they are more likely to encounter misleading information from a sales rep, so a claim with nothing behind it is one more thing the buyer has to verify somewhere else.
The practical answer is to make every claim checkable. Link to the page where the buyer can confirm it, name the date it was true, and say where a competitor is stronger. A buyer who can verify you quickly has less reason to go back to the assistant, or to a rival, for a second opinion.
What does outreach that helps buyers verify look like?
It gives the buyer something they can check. Blaisdell's closing advice in the release was for sellers to show up differently, "engaging where they can help buyers validate information, reduce risk and move forward with greater confidence."
Here is what that changes in a typical outbound message. The left column is a common pitch habit; the right is our suggestion:
| Pitch habit | Verification habit |
|---|---|
| Best-in-class or industry-leading claims | One specific claim, with a link to where the buyer can check it |
| Ignoring competitors | A side-by-side comparison that names the rival, cites their own docs, and admits one thing they do better |
| Asking for a 30-minute demo | An offer to answer one named question in 10 or 15 minutes |
| A case study PDF with no names | A customer in the buyer's industry who has agreed to take a reference call |
| Pricing available on request only | The price range or plan that fits, in writing, with what is and isn't included |
| Claims about AI in general | What your product does on the buyer's own example, shown live |
Timing matters as much as content. In our reading, the outreach moments that line up with Gartner's three are someone posting about a problem, someone comparing tools or asking for an alternative to a competitor, and someone close to a decision. Our list of 15 free buying signals for small teams covers how to spot them.
Three example messages that help a buyer verify
These are examples to adapt, written for a made-up product. Replace every bracket with something true and checkable. If you can't fill a bracket honestly, cut that line.
Each message offers proof, a fair comparison or a source in the first two lines, and none asks for more than 15 minutes. For what to send after the first reply, see these LinkedIn follow-up message templates.
How to build a verification kit this week
Ask AI assistants about you
Ask two or three assistants what your product does, what it costs and how it compares with your closest competitor. Write down every wrong or outdated answer. Gartner found 45% of buyers used GenAI mainly to gather vendor and product information, so these answers may be what buyers bring to your first call.
Publish the facts the assistants got wrong
Put correct pricing, limits and features on a public page, with the date you last checked them. A buyer can then verify the fact without asking you, and you can link it in outreach.
Write one honest comparison
Pick your most common competitor. Build a table from their public pages, link each cell to its source, and include at least one row where they are stronger. This is the asset behind Example 1 and Example 3.
Line up two reference customers
Ask two happy customers if a prospect in their industry may call them for 10 minutes. Gartner names finalising the purchase as one of the moments reps matter most; a reference call is proof a buyer can check at that stage.
Add a source line to your templates
Edit your outreach templates so every claim has a link or is cut. If you use an AI SDR, hold what it sends to the same standard. Siela's AI SDR, for example, writes each LinkedIn and X message from the person's profile and the signal that surfaced them, and a second AI reviewer checks it before it is sent.
Frequently asked questions
What percentage of B2B buyers use generative AI when buying?
In a Gartner survey of 645 B2B buyers, run from August to September 2025 and published on 20 May 2026, 45% said they used GenAI during a recent purchase, mainly to gather information on vendors and products. The same buyers used an average of seven information sources, so AI was one input among several.
Do B2B buyers prefer a rep-free buying experience?
Many say so. In Gartner's survey of 645 B2B buyers, 67% preferred a sales rep-free experience and 70% preferred a completely digital, self-service one. Yet 69% also preferred to validate AI-generated insights with a sales rep. Buyers want to research alone and then check what they found with a person at specific moments.
When do B2B buyers most want to talk to a sales rep?
Gartner's 20 May 2026 release says reps remain the most important information source at three points: researching a business problem or need, identifying a preferred supplier and securing internal support, and finalising the purchase. In our view, outreach timed to those moments, such as when someone is comparing tools, has the most to offer a buyer.
Do B2B buyers trust AI more than sales reps?
Gartner's survey shows buyers almost evenly split. In it, 51% of B2B buyers said they are more likely to encounter misleading information from GenAI, and 49% said the same about sales reps. In our view, that makes claims with a source the buyer can check worth more than claims a buyer has to take on trust.
When was the Gartner 69% survey conducted?
Gartner surveyed 645 B2B buyers from August through September 2025. It published the findings on 20 May 2026 and presented them at the Gartner CSO and Sales Leader Conference in Las Vegas, held 19 to 20 May 2026. The release does not say which countries, industries or company sizes the respondents came from.
Sources
- Gartner: Survey Finds 69% of B2B Buyers Turn to Sales Reps to Validate AI-Generated Insights (published 20 May 2026)