'SMBs need to move from disconnected pilots to true alignment': Study finds European firms are getting more out of AI than other markets

• SAS finds EU SMBs are seeing better results from real-world AI deployments
• Compliance is still a major headache for one in four leaders
• Preparing for the EU AI Act could have helped

A new AI readiness report from SAS has claimed European small businesses are among the most ready to achieve the most ROI from artificial intelligence compared with other global regions.

While North American SMBs perform better in planning, building and enabling, they fall short on actual deployment, indicating that European SMBs have progressed beyond pilots to actual implementation.

However, the number of businesses globally that are still in the earlier stages of AI readiness is much greater, with 37% considered 'experimental' and 33% considered 'opportunistic'. Nine in 10 of the stage-one (experimental) companies haven't even got a formal AI strategy in place, the report reveals.

AI deployment is higher in Europe, but overall deployment is still low

Compared with the number of businesses in the early stages of AI readiness, only 9% have fully embedded AI into strategy, operations and decision-making.

For many, it's the fundamental building blocks that are still holding them back. Nearly half say data is still scattered across systems (45%) and that AI tools operate independently from one another (46%). Compliance, security and risk management is still the biggest barrier for 24% of the survey's respondents.

"Organisations treating governance as a foundation rather than an obstacle are often the ones best positioned to execute," SAS Global Channels SVP John Carey wrote.

The report also implies that preparing for regulation like the EU AI Act could have positioned companies better to maximize their AI ROI, while other regions are seemingly lacking in this area.

IDC Research VP Daniel-Zoe Jimenez urged businesses to focus on aligning data, people and resources to avoid disconnected pilots. "Experimenting with the technology is one thing. Deploying it strategically and sustainably is quite another."