Page 30 - Red Hat PR REPORT - OCTOBER 2025

Blog Post

Enterprise AI survey: ambition, the value gap, and the importance of

open source
By Hans Roth, Senior Vice President & General Manager, EMEA, Red Hat

13 October, 2025 - Organisations are primed for widespread adoption of artificial intelligence
(AI), and see enterprise open source as an important success factor; however, their ability to
scale is challenged by skills gaps, high costs and shadow AI. That’s the headline finding of our
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latest survey of over 900 IT leaders and AI engineers in nine countries .

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According to the survey, AI is a core strategic priority for 72% of organisations in Europe, the
Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), and they have plans to increase their AI investments by an
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average of 32% by 2026 .

The focus on AI is clear, yet the data also reveals a stark gap between ambition and reality: only
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7% of organisations report “driving customer value” at scale from their AI investments today .
This is a crucial challenge for leaders who need to translate significant investment into tangible
business outcomes.

So, what is preventing organisations moving from small-scale pilots to enterprise-wide value?

Tackling the barriers to scale AI

Our survey data outlines the extent of the talent shortage faced, with 70% of respondents
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agreeing there is an urgent AI skills gap . The most significant gaps cited by those respondents
are in the practical application of AI, such as connecting AI to enterprise data (49%), and
making efficient use of AI capabilities (48%). Nearly as many (47%) report difficulty educating
the business to use AI effectively, which complicates organisation-wide adoption.

As the role of AI in the workplace is established, another layer of complexity emerges. ‘Shadow
AI’, the use of unsanctioned AI tools by employees, is becoming a significant challenge to
effective governance and scalable adoption with a stronger security posture.

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The vast majority of responding EMEA organisations (91% ) admit their organisation is
experiencing a shadow AI problem. This should serve as a wake-up call: AI is being adopted