BOSTON, Oct. 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A new survey from Pave, the simplest AI app builder for businesses, finds that while employees are eager to build applications with AI—and business leaders are encouraging them to do so—organizations are struggling to support and scale those innovations across the business.

For The State of Employee-Built Apps in 2026 report, Pave surveyed more than 5,500 U.S. employees and business leaders across industries such as technology, healthcare, and construction. The findings show there is strong demand for tools that simplify workflow automation and replace manual processes, but that builders are creating them faster than they can be reviewed and scaled. It also found that leaders overwhelmingly support builder innovation and agree that governance structure is needed to keep building.

“The research shows that employees want to build the tools they need without waiting for overburdened IT teams to create it for them, or having to buy new, off-the-shelf software products that only solve part of their problem. The apps they’re building with prototyping tools are valuable ideas, but are typically not ready to be used in production for a number of reasons, including security,” said Josh Allen, Chief Revenue Officer and GM, Pave at Quickbase. “We built Pave to solve this exact problem—to empower anyone to build, launch, and use the solutions they need without compromising on creativity or security.”

Employees are building their own AI apps, with support from business leaders

Of employees surveyed, 38% used AI to build an app or working prototype in the past year, and 24% built one they’ve used for work. Among these app builders, 81% created two or more applications, and 38% built four or more. The survey also revealed:

  • App building is largely employee-driven. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of builders cited ‘saving time’ or ‘reducing manual work’ as their primary motivation, while just nine of 1,970 (0.5%) built an app because of a request or expectation from a manager or colleague. Most apps (84%) target a process previously handled in spreadsheets, email, chat, or paper.
  • App building extends beyond technical roles. Among employees outside IT, software engineering, and cybersecurity, 22% built an app they use for work. Managers and supervisors were more likely to build an app than individual contributors and team leads without direct reports (29% versus 17%).
  • Business leaders recognize the value of employee-built apps. Among leaders who discovered an employee-built app, 83% called it ‘important’ or ‘essential’ to the process it supported – and fewer than 2% required their employees to stop using them. Overall, 80% of leaders want employees to remain involved in building and running apps.

Limited IT resources, security reviews, and integration challenges preventing scale

The survey also found several challenges preventing organizations from supporting and scaling employee-built applications:

  • Low visibility. 70% of leaders feel confident they have a complete picture of employee-built apps in their department. However, 53% of organizations found at least one app in the past year that IT and leadership never knew existed.
  • Security and integration challenges. App builders most frequently named ‘integration with business systems’ and ‘security or compliance reviews’ as barriers to wider use (both 41%), followed by testing and reliability (33%). And, while 57% of leaders require security and risk assessments, only 32% of app builders have access to someone who can help conduct one.
  • Limited IT resources and support. Among leaders whose organizations reviewed an employee-built app, 69% reported the review took at least three person-weeks of combined IT and engineering labor. Only 14% of app builders said their organization had designated someone to maintain and support their applications.

To learn more, read The State of Employee-Built Apps in 2026 survey report here.

Methodology
The research was conducted in September 2026 through two separate surveys. The first surveyed 527 manager-level-and-higher business leaders with direct responsibility for software tools, funding, or policies. The second surveyed 5,177 employees at manager level or below. The two groups were not matched by company. Across both surveys combined, respondents spanned more than a dozen industries, led by healthcare and life sciences (14%), technology (9%), and construction, engineering, and real estate (9%), with no single industry making up more than 14% of the sample. All respondents reported working full time in the United States.

About Pave
Pave is the simplest AI app builder for businesses. With data, governance, permissions, hosting, deployment, and agentic orchestration built in, Pave gives businesses a more practical, controlled path from experimentation to execution. Start building for free at www.quickbase.com/pave, and follow Pave on Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.

Media Contact 
pr@quickbase.com


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