AI’s influence on cloud dependency is growing, but organizational maturity in this area remains low, with only 14% of organizations achieving high cloud maturity despite nearly two decades of cloud adoption, a report revealed. NTT DATA’s study highlighted that while 99% of organizations recognize the escalating need for cloud investment due to AI, 88% believe that current investment levels jeopardize AI, cloud-native, and modernization initiatives. The report, based on a survey of over 2,300 senior decision-makers across 33 countries, emphasized a significant gap between aspiration and reality, as less than half of organizations are content with the impact of cloud or their modernization progress.
Cloud leaders, identified as organizations that have reached an advanced stage of cloud adoption and performance, are better positioned to leverage AI effectively, according to the report. Charlie Li, President of Global Head of Cloud and Security at NTT DATA, cautioned that AI is advancing faster than enterprise cloud maturity, emphasizing the critical role of evolving cloud foundations to support AI growth and value. The report stressed the necessity of developing cloud and AI strategies concurrently to maximize their strategic value, noting a rising demand for AI alongside uneven alignment. Chief AI Officers (CAIOs) are notably more inclined than CIOs and CTOs to acknowledge the increased cloud investment requirements driven by AI.
The report underscored that a platform-centric approach is now imperative, particularly as cloud investments stall and operational complexities rise, with more than half of respondents citing challenges in managing cloud costs. Organizations are anticipating a threefold surge in fully managed cloud platforms and are advised to recalibrate their cloud transformation key performance indicators (KPIs) accordingly. Notably, 47% of cloud leaders integrated AI in their recent cloud migration projects, a higher proportion compared to other organizations.
