New Delhi, March 27 (IANS) AI is increasing cloud dependency, yet investment levels are not aligned as only 14 per cent of organisations reached the highest level of cloud maturity despite nearly two decades of cloud adoption, a report said on Friday.

The report from NTT DATA said that 99 per cent of organisations feel AI is increasing demand for cloud investment, yet 88 per cent felt current cloud investment levels are putting AI, cloud‑native and modernisation initiatives at risk.

The findings are based on a global survey of over 2,300 senior decision‑makers across 33 countries.

Fewer than half of organisations are satisfied with cloud’s impact or with their modernisation progress, signalling a disconnect between ambition and reality.

Cloud leaders, or organizations that feel “cloud evolved” — the most advanced in terms of cloud adoption and impact, with solid business performance – are significantly better positioned to capitalize on AI, the report said.

“AI is accelerating faster than enterprise cloud maturity. Cloud has moved well beyond infrastructure to the execution layer for AI. Organisations that fail to evolve their cloud foundations risk constraining the growth and value of their AI investments,” said Charlie Li, President, Global Head of Cloud and Security, NTT DATA, Inc.

To turn cloud into a strategic value engine, both cloud and AI strategies need to be developed in tandem, the report said, pointing out that AI demand is rising, yet alignment is uneven. CAIOs are 22 per cent more likely than CIOs and CTOs to say AI increases cloud investment needs.

A platform-led approach is no longer optional, it said, adding with investments stalling and environments getting more complex, over half respondents cited cloud cost management challenges.

Organisations expect a threefold increase in fully managed cloud platforms, it said, urging firms to reset their cloud transformation KPIs.

Around 47 per cent of cloud leaders used AI in their last cloud migration project, compared with 35 per cent of all others, it noted.

—IANS

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