AI remains a top priority for business leaders worldwide in 2025, with a strong focus on reaping tangible results from their AI initiatives. This year, one in three companies globally is planning to allocate over $25 million to AI.

For the second year, Boston Consulting Group (BCG)’s AI Radar global survey has captured the mood of business executives when it comes to AI. The findings, released today, reveal both optimism and significant challenges in realizing AI’s full potential. In the latest edition of the AI Radar report, Closing the AI Impact Gap, BCG surveyed 1,803 C-level executives across 19 markets and 12 industries.

By 2028, 10% of sellers will save enough time with AI to seek “overemployment”, covertly working multiple jobs, according to Gartner, Inc.

The implementation and use of AI in sales will result in more sellers looking to engage in additional work outside their primary employment due to freed capacity from AI automation. Gartner’s survey of 3,496 global employees. 41% of sellers surveyed at least somewhat agree that new technology has freed up their capacity by automating manual and repetitive tasks.

IDC predicts that by 2027, 50% of IT buyers in Asia/Pacific will only work with vendors that meet social, environmental, and governance-related responsible AI criteria in accordance with sustainable procurement requirements. This shift in tech-buyer mindset will emerge from organizations moving from the initial "scramble" of GenAI experimentation, currently at a 62% success rate, to a full-scale integration of AI across enterprises.

New research from leading global technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) says enterprises will increase the use of AI in their revenue performance management (RPM) platforms over the next two years to expedite time-to-value and deploy more effective revenue performance plans.

The pressure is on for companies to turn AI investment into impact, according to PwC’s 2024 Global Investor Survey, released today. 73% of investors say companies should deploy AI solutions at scale, as overwhelmingly 66% expect the companies they invest in to deliver productivity increases from AI over the next 12 months, with 63% expecting revenue increases and 62% expecting it to increase profitability.

In the report, IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Future of Customer Experience 2025 Predictions — Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Implications, IDC stresses the integral role of AI to provide highly personalized experiences for customers to help the region’s businesses differentiate themselves from competitors. This is highlighted in the prediction that by 2028, consumers will spend $32 billion via AI agents that run independently on their smartphones to programmatically shop for goods, services, and considered purchases. CX executives will adjust their business strategies based on such initiatives and seek to incorporate a more AI-infused approach in their campaigns.

STAMFORD, Artificial intelligence in all its forms, including GenAI, natural language processing, agents and agentic devices, will revolutionize enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and the ways individuals and enterprises work with the software by 2027, a new research report from leading global technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) says.

As cyber threats become more sophisticated and persistent, organisations across East Africa are rising to the challenge. The latest Digital Trust Insights (DTI) Survey for the East Africa region, titled “Strengthening Cyber Defences: The Road to Resilience in East Africa” reveals a significant shift in priorities, with 74% of businesses in the region placing cyber risks at the top of their agenda—well above global averages. It’s clear that cybersecurity is no longer just an IT issue; it’s a critical business imperative.

By 2027, 40% of power and utilities will deploy AI-driven operators in control rooms, reducing human error risks, but increasing cyber-physical system security vulnerabilities, according to Gartner, Inc. The 2025 Gartner CIO and Technology Executive Survey indicated that 94% of power and utility chief information officers (CIOs) plan to increase their AI investments in 2025, with an average spending increase of 38.3%.

A recent IDC report titled, Leveraging AI to Overcome ESG Compliance Challenges, highlighted that over 25% of businesses in Asia/Pacific rank Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) compliance requirements as their top challenge in the next 12 months. Being an export-reliant regional economy, the Asia/Pacific region is highly sensitive and influenced by regulations in western markets. Countries and businesses in the region must transition to more sustainable and ESG-compliant economies to ensure economic growth and maintain competitiveness. The small number of countries that have levied some form of carbon tax, such as Japan, Singapore, India, and Indonesia, are export-heavy economies that are more sensitive to shifts in global regulations and, as a result, are the early adopters.

According to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker , global smartphone shipments increased 2.4% year-over-year (YoY) to 331.7 million units in the fourth quarter of 2024 (4Q24). This marks the sixth consecutive quarter of shipment growth, closing the whole year with 6.4% growth and 1.24 billion shipments, marking a strong recovery after two challenging years of decline. We expect the market to continue growing in 2025, albeit at a slower pace, as refresh cycles continue growing and pent-up demand is fulfilled.

The gaming industry, once synonymous with double-digit growth, now finds itself at a crossroads. Rising interest rates, the return of players to offices and classrooms post pandemic, and high-profile games failing to meet expectations have fundamentally reshaped the gaming landscape. The industry now faces a cascade of challenges: project delays, significant layoffs, and even shuttered studios have become all too common.

The report, which surveyed 4,701 CEOs across 109 countries and territories, also finds that 42% expect to increase headcount by 5% or more in the next 12 months – more than double the proportion who expect headcount decreases (17%), and up from 39% last year. The percentage is highest (48%) among smaller companies (less than US$100 million) and those in the technology (61%), real estate (61%), private equity (52%) and pharma and life sciences (51%) sectors.

By 2027 mobile app usage will decrease by 25% due to AI assistants according to Gartner, Inc.

Smartphone users will turn to AI assistants, such as Apple Intelligence, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Meta AI, and others to replace apps for many functions. In addition to the impact of AI assistants, apps will be consolidated across separate brands and companies, creating mobile app partnerships or consortiums to reach more users per app at scale and defray the cost of creation and maintenance.

An unpredictable global environment and advancing AI and intelligent technologies are driving fundamental shifts in the risk landscape and insurers’ relationships with clients and regulators in Europe, says a new research report from Information Services Group (ISG), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.