On average, German companies - from SMEs to large corporations - are investing 29.8 million euros in AI projects this year. The majority of companies plan to increase their spending by 37 percent by 2027.
Germany thus follows the USA (32 million euros) and China (36.4 million euros) with strong growth momentum. German companies are therefore investing more in AI than ever before and expect tangible results in return: According to the „SAP Value of AI Report“, they expect the return on investment (ROI) to double from 17 percent today to 31 percent by 2027. 77% of companies expect their AI investments to pay for themselves in less than three years. However, AI investments are currently a strategic priority for only 9% of companies.
Data quality is crucial to success
AI already supports 25 percent of tasks in German companies today, and this figure is expected to rise to 41 percent in two years' time. The majority of respondents expect AI to play a central role in business processes by 2029 at the latest. However, certain areas - such as the legal department, finance or HR, as well as the management of some companies - still have doubts about data maturity and their ability to exchange data responsibly.
„The study confirms that the quality of the data and the trustful handling of AI are crucial for the success of AI projects,“ says Philipp Herzig, Chief Technology Officer and Chief AI Officer at SAP. „When AI is directly integrated into processes and business applications with high-quality data, companies achieve added value and measurable returns - today and in the future.“ According to the SAP study, the responsible use of AI remains a key issue. For example, 84 percent of respondents see risks from unauthorized AI use.
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„The quality of the data and the trustful handling of AI are crucial for the success of AI projects.“
Philipp Herzig,
CTO and Chief AI Officer,
SAP
Growth driver agentic AI
Agentic AI - intelligent, autonomous systems - promises a new innovation boost and is raising great expectations among German companies. 72% of the companies surveyed see great transformation potential in AI agents. In particular, 67% of respondents expect significant added value in the management of complex processes across different business areas. 60% of companies believe they are at least partially prepared for the use of AI agents and 2% are fully prepared. For the „SAP Value of AI Report“, 1,600 managers from eight countries worldwide were surveyed, including 200 from Germany.
Source: SAP
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