Neudata's 2026 report found that 97% of alternative and market data buyers expect spending to increase or remain steady over the next 12 months, up from 89% last year and the highest confidence in the survey's three-year history. The report drew 191 global responses from data providers and buyers, including investment firms, quant, multi-strategy, discretionary and macro funds, and AI research labs; 60% of buyer respondents manage more than $1 billion in assets. AI's measurable benefits were concentrated in operational efficiency: 56% of buyers said their firms recorded a tangible return from AI deployment in the previous 12 months, with 41% citing efficiency gains and 17% reporting improved investment performance. At the same time, 33% of buyers said the quality of their data sources had deteriorated over the past one to two years, with respondents divided over whether AI-generated content was responsible. Daniel Entrup of AggKnowledge said providers are using AI to generate or map datasets or to reduce or reassign quality-control staff, while buyers cited auditability, privacy and reliability concerns around AI-generated products and large language models. Hedge funds generally prefer to process raw data internally and trust AI more for workflow than for alpha. The leading reason trials failed to become purchases was the absence of a discernible investment signal, cited by 39% of buyers, versus 25% who cited price. Model Context Protocol was offered by 44% of providers, and more than half of those providers charged no additional fee. Neudata CEO and founder Rado Lipuš said the market remains confident in alternative and market data as AI reshapes efficiency, data quality, pricing and investment performance considerations.