This AI Stock Could Be 2026’s Best Under-the-Radar Bargain

AI headlines tend to focus on the same household names, but the most compelling opportunities are often hiding in plain sight. As the AI boom shifts from hype to execution, investors are increasingly rewarded for backing the companies that power AI behind the scenes: the toolmakers, infrastructure providers, and “picks-and-shovels” businesses that enable model training, deployment, and scaling.

One under-the-radar name that fits this profile is UiPath (NYSE: PATH). While not always lumped into the “AI stock” category by casual investors, UiPath is positioned at the intersection of automation and AI—two trends that are converging rapidly. If 2026 becomes the year enterprises finally standardize on AI-driven workflows, UiPath could look like a bargain at today’s levels.

Why Under-the-Radar AI Plays May Outperform in 2026

In the early stages of major tech cycles, the market tends to bid up the most visible leaders. Later, as adoption spreads, value often migrates to companies with practical enterprise use cases and repeatable revenue. That shift is important for predicting what could work in 2026.

The market is moving from models to outcomes

Enterprises aren’t buying AI for novelty; they’re buying it to reduce costs, speed up processes, and improve decision-making. The winners will increasingly be the companies that can translate AI into measurable ROI.

Workflow automation is becoming the delivery layer for AI

Even the best AI model doesn’t help much if it isn’t embedded into business processes. That’s where automation platforms come in connecting systems, triggering actions, managing compliance steps, and ensuring that AI output becomes real work.

The Under-the-Radar Bargain: UiPath (PATH)

UiPath is best known for robotic process automation (RPA), a category that helps companies automate repetitive digital tasks think copying data between systems, processing invoices, onboarding employees, or managing customer support workflows.

What makes UiPath especially relevant now is that RPA is evolving into AI-powered agentic automation, where software can interpret information, make decisions within guardrails, and coordinate work across applications. This is the direction many enterprises are heading, and UiPath is building toward it.

What UiPath actually sells (in plain English)

• Automation software that can mimic human clicks and keystrokes across business applications
• Orchestration tools to manage, monitor, and govern automated processes
• AI capabilities for understanding documents, classifying tickets, extracting data, and enhancing workflows
• Enterprise-grade controls for security, auditability, access permissions, and compliance

This enterprise plumbing isn’t flashy, but it’s exactly what large organizations pay for when they need AI to work reliably at scale.

Why UiPath Could Look Like a Bargain by 2026

Calling a stock a bargain isn’t about whether it’s cheap in absolute terms—it’s about whether the market is underestimating its future cash flows and strategic relevance. UiPath has several characteristics that could lead to that situation.

1) AI adoption needs automation to be useful

Companies are experimenting with large language models, but rolling them into real processes is hard. Businesses need:

• Governance (Who can do what? What data is touched? What’s logged?)
• Integration (How does AI connect to ERP, CRM, HR, and ticketing systems?)
• Error handling (What happens when AI is uncertain or wrong?)
• Human-in-the-loop workflows (Approvals, escalations, exception handling)

UiPath’s core value proposition building dependable workflows across messy enterprise systems fits neatly into this challenge. If AI is the brain, automation is often the hands.

2) Enterprises want productivity gains, and automation offers measurable ROI

In a world of tight budgets and efficiency mandates, CFOs want results they can quantify. Automation lends itself to clear metrics such as time saved per process, reduced error rates, faster cycle times, and improved compliance. AI-enhanced automation can push those benefits even further.

If macro conditions remain uncertain heading into 2026, the market could favor companies tied to cost reduction and productivity rather than purely experimental AI spending.

3) UiPath is positioned for the “agent” era

As AI agents become a bigger theme, enterprises will look for platforms that can coordinate agent actions safely across systems. UiPath’s orchestration and governance DNA gives it a credible path to deliver agentic workflows in regulated environments.

Many general-purpose AI tools struggle when faced with real enterprise complexity permissions, audit trails, inconsistent data, legacy apps, and strict compliance rules. UiPath was built for that reality.

4) Underappreciated category potential re-rating

RPA has periodically fallen out of favor as investors chase shinier AI narratives. But categories don’t need to be trendy to be valuable. If UiPath successfully re-frames itself as an AI-first automation platform and execution improves, investor perception could shift sometimes quickly.

Key Growth Catalysts to Watch Through 2026

If you’re considering UiPath as a 2026 bargain candidate, focus less on day-to-day noise and more on a few durable signals.

Expanding AI features inside the platform

Watch for progress in AI-led capabilities that reduce manual setup and improve automation outcomes especially in document processing, communications triage, and workflow decisioning.

Enterprise standardization and larger deployments

The biggest wins in automation often come when a platform becomes the standard across departments, not just a single pilot project. Signs of broader standardization can indicate stronger long-term retention and expansion revenue.

Partner ecosystem momentum

System integrators and implementation partners play a major role in scaling enterprise software. Increased partner-driven deployments can help UiPath reach more customers efficiently and embed itself deeper in complex organizations.

Risks and What Could Go Wrong

No best bargain thesis is complete without acknowledging the downside. UiPath faces real competitive and execution risks.

Competition is intense

Big-platform vendors and well-funded software firms all want a piece of automation and AI workflows. UiPath must keep innovating and proving that it can deliver superior time-to-value and governance.

Enterprise spending cycles can be lumpy

Even if demand is strong, large enterprise deals can take time especially when budgets tighten or projects require cross-department coordination.

Product messaging must stay clear

As UiPath expands from RPA into agentic automation, it must communicate the value proposition in a way that resonates with buyers. Confused positioning can slow adoption, even when the tech is solid.

How Investors Can Think About Valuation (Without Overcomplicating It)

Rather than focusing on a single valuation metric, it may be more useful to ask whether UiPath can become a durable platform with:

• High retention (customers renew and expand)
• Strong gross margins typical of enterprise software
• Operating leverage as growth scales
• A defensible niche in governed workflow automation

If the market starts to believe UiPath can play a central role in AI-driven business execution, the stock may not stay under the radar. By 2026, the valuation could reflect that strategic importance especially if profitability and free cash flow trends improve.

Bottom Line: A Practical AI Stock Hiding in Plain Sight

UiPath won’t always dominate AI conversations, but it sits in a crucial position: turning AI from a clever demo into real operational improvement. As companies push beyond experimentation and into scaled deployment, AI-powered automation may become one of the most valuable layers in the enterprise stack.

That’s why UiPath (PATH) stands out as a credible candidate for 2026’s best under-the-radar bargain: it is tied to measurable ROI, built for enterprise complexity, and aligned with the next phase of AI adoption where outcomes matter more than hype.

Note: This article is for informational purposes only and is not financial advice. Consider your risk tolerance and do your own research before investing.