Artificial Intelligence-Enabled Business Model Innovation: A Literature Review and Future Outlook

Abstract

With the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence (AI), the innovation and evolution of enterprise business models have become increasingly complex. Nevertheless, existing research on the relationship between AI and business models remains fragmented, lacks systematic integration, and has yet to form a coherent analytical framework. To address this gap, this study conducts a systematic literature review of 70 core journal articles, aiming to synthesize prior findings and develop a comprehensive understanding of how AI reshapes business models.

Through a rigorous process of literature coding and classification, this paper identifies four major research themes: (1) the impact of AI on business model innovation, (2) AI-based business model archetypes, (3) AI-enabled business model evolution, and (4) the co-evolution of AI and business models. The results indicate that AI not only stimulates innovation in overall business models and their individual components, but also drives their transformation into complex, dynamic systems characterized by continuous self-learning, self-iteration, and adaptive adjustment.

Building on a systematic assessment of the limitations in existing studies, this paper proposes future research directions at the enterprise, industry, and ecosystem levels. The conclusions offer a relatively complete theoretical framework for understanding business model evolution in the era of AI and provide valuable practical insights for firms seeking to leverage AI to achieve sustainable business model transformation.