According to the research conducted by IDC and commissioned by Expereo, 88% of 650 technology leaders across Europe, the US and Asia-Pacific believe AI will be important in meeting business goals over the next year.
However, 26% of tech executives claim expectations are growing faster than their teams can keep up.
Only 14% of UK businesses say it has fallen short, with 64% benefits especially in customer-facing work and 65% in reducing costs, respectively.
Some 47% say their networks aren’t ready to support AI and 49% say poor network performance is holding back large-scale data or AI projects, the research states.
Meanwhile, 41% cite AI governance and ethics as major concerns, while others worry about employee resistance (30%) and the fast pace of change (32%).
Despite these hurdles, 76% say AI has raised their visibility at the board level, up from 60% in 2024.
Expereo CEO, Ben Elms, said: “As global businesses embrace AI to transform employee and customer experience, setting realistic goals and aligning expectations will be critical to ensuring that AI delivers long-term value, rather than being viewed as a quick fix.
“While the potential of AI is immense, its successful integration requires careful planning. Technology leaders must recognise the need for robust networks and connectivity infrastructure to support AI at scale, while also ensuring consistent performance across these networks.
“We are at a pivotal moment where strategic investments in technology and IT infrastructure are necessary to meet both current and future demands.”
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