The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Project Management: Opportunities, Challenges, and Future Directions for Research and Practice

The adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) within project management is one of the most striking changes in modern organisational practice. With today's rise in the complexity and data-driven nature of projects, AI provides tools that can make decisions more efficiently, help predict potential risks, and more. This conceptual review examines the current applications of AI in project management, with a focus on its use in planning, scheduling, risk analysis, communication, and monitoring. The review reports the following opportunities created by AI, namely: automation of regular processes, increased predictive accuracy, personalised project tools, and the facilitation of agile and remote project work. Meanwhile, it takes into consideration the obstacles to adoption, including ethical issues, data quality, skills, integration, and the threat of excessive dependence on automated systems. The paper also presents a discussion on the implications for practice, with the requirement that project managers acquire digital competencies, organisations establish governance structures, and professional organisations provide ethical guidelines and training. It concludes with an emphasis on the significance of balanced adoption strategies, which will involve both technological innovation and human judgment. Future research recommendations are also provided, focusing on empirical validation, longitudinal and comparative research, and the development of ethical and policy frameworks. This review helps to understand better how AI can transform project management and emphasizes the importance of responsible integration to make the results sustainable and effective.