Retirement plan advisors have moved beyond artificial intelligence experiments and are now embedding the technology into daily workflows, according to the sixth annual Defined Contribution Consultant Study from T. Rowe Price. The report, based on responses from 36 leading consulting and advisory firms that collectively serve more than 160,000 plan sponsor clients, found that AI usage has shifted from the whiteboard to the workflow. Those firms oversee $10.3 trillion in DC plan assets under advisement, representing roughly 72% of the $14.2 trillion U.S. DC market as of December 31, 2025, per Investment Company Institute data.
Jessica Sclafani, head of the Retirement Strategist Team at T. Rowe Price, said the research is driven by a commitment to uncovering deeper insights. "By capturing the insights of leading consultants and advisors, we are better equipped to anticipate emerging trends, incorporate client preferences into our solutions, and help clients make more informed decisions in an evolving retirement landscape," she said.
AI adoption accelerates
The most striking shift is in AI adoption. In 2025, 44% of respondent firms said their AI use was too early to evaluate; by 2026, that figure had plummeted to 14%, a 30-percentage-point drop in a single year. Operational efficiency and client preparation are driving the adoption: 78% of firms now use AI routinely to improve internal workflows, 67% use it to streamline client meeting preparation, and 47% use it for outreach. Usage for plan design and benchmarking (12%) and participant engagement (9%) remains low, areas where fiduciary judgment and human expertise still dominate.
Notably, firms with formal AI governance policies used AI tools roughly 50% more frequently across business functions than those without such policies. The data suggest that defined guardrails accelerate adoption rather than slow it, a finding with clear implications for how firms structure their technology programs.
Private credit expectations surge
Momentum for private assets inside DC plans continues to build. Respondents rated the likelihood of various alternative investment strategies being incorporated into DC plans over the next 12 to 24 months on a scale of 1 (least likely) to 4 (most likely). Private credit received a mean likelihood score of 2.6 in 2026, up sharply from 1.7 in 2024. Private equity moved from 1.6 to 2.2 over the same period. Expectations increased across nearly all private asset categories, with hedge funds the lone exception.
Respondents expect these allocations to be delivered predominantly through target-date funds, both custom and off-the-shelf. Co-manufactured target-date solutions have grown to more than $70 billion in assets across DC recordkeepers as of year-end 2025, an increase of more than 50% from the prior year, according to Sway Research. Cryptocurrency, however, remains on the sidelines: three-quarters of respondents view digital assets as best suited for self-directed brokerage windows, not the plan's core lineup. The Department of Labor's March 2026 proposed safe harbor rule, which would provide ERISA fiduciaries with a process-based standard for including alternative investments in DC plan lineups, has created additional policy tailwinds.
Personalization and retirement income converge
The study also tracks a deepening focus on participant-level customization and decumulation support. Managed accounts, retirement planning tools, and pre-retiree communications all posted meaningful gains in consultant support ratings from 2021 to 2026. Support for pre-retiree communications rose from 2.7 to 3.1 on a scale of 1 to 4, while retirement planning tools climbed from 2.5 to 2.9 and managed accounts from 2.5 to 2.8 over the same five-year span.
Support for managed accounts as a qualified default investment alternative remains limited. A more popular framework is the dynamic QDIA model, which transitions participants from a target-date fund into a managed account as they approach retirement. That approach rated 2.2 out of 4, with consultants who engage directly with participants considerably more likely to back it. On the income side, a simple systematic withdrawal capability earned the highest appeal score at 3.2, reflecting plan sponsors' priority to convert savings into predictable income without adding operational complexity. Target-date funds with an embedded non-guaranteed managed payout feature ranked second at 2.8, while managed accounts with income planning features scored 2.6.
Stable value draws fresh scrutiny
Capital preservation is another area under review. The study found that 52% of firms cited poor stable value performance as a factor influencing their evaluation of capital preservation options, a 33-percentage-point increase from five years earlier. That shift reflects the period since 2022 when stable value funds underperformed, prompting consultants to reassess their role in DC plans.
The findings align with broader trends in the retirement industry. As advisors shift private markets focus to portfolio design and liquidity budgets, the integration of private assets into DC plans is becoming more deliberate. Meanwhile, the surge in alternative asset flows reflects a broader move toward integrated portfolios. For plan sponsors, the message is clear: AI is now a tool for efficiency, private credit is gaining acceptance, and personalization is moving from concept to practice.
