The Impact of AI Attitudes and Digital Capabilities on Business Performance and Burnout

Abstract

The rapid diffusion of artificial intelligence (AI) has reshaped digital transformation and organisational performance, yet the mechanisms linking entrepreneurs’ AI attitudes to business outcomes remain underexplored. This study examines how digital transformation processes mediate the relationship between positive attitudes towards AI and firm performance. Specifically, it tests the sequential mediating roles of digital business orientation and digital capabilities in relation to financial and non-financial performance, while also considering entrepreneurial burnout. Data were collected through an online survey distributed via Facebook and LinkedIn and analysed using the PROCESS macro (Models 6 and 1) in a sample of 116 Romanian entrepreneurs. Results show that positive AI attitudes significantly predict digital business orientation, which strongly enhances digital capabilities; these capabilities, in turn, positively influence both performance outcomes. The findings confirm a significant serial mediation effect, suggesting that AI attitudes improve firm performance mainly by fostering digital orientation and capabilities. Burnout does not significantly moderate the link between digital capabilities and performance, although it is negatively associated with non-financial performance. The study underscores the strategic value of digital orientation and capabilities for entrepreneurial success in the AI era.