Europe Is Catching Up in the AI Race

Europe’s largest companies are showing the first signs of narrowing the AI gap with North America. At the same time, the growing disparity between large and smaller companies threatens to slow down European progress once again. German companies are treading water. This is evident in the first edition of the Accenture AI Progress Barometer.

AI readiness describes the key capabilities that companies need to derive the greatest possible benefit from the use of AI. These include, in particular, high-quality and easily accessible data, qualified employees, and appropriate processes. The Accenture AI Progress Barometer measures the AI readiness of approximately 3,000 of the world’s largest companies every six months. Each organization is benchmarked against comparable companies across industries and regions. The assessment is based on a scale from 0 to 100, where 100 represents the maximum achievable score and indicates the highest level of AI readiness.

Corporations as a Driving Force

According to the barometer, European companies have increased their AI capabilities by an average of 1.6 points over the past six months. In contrast, the figure for North America is 1.1 points. Overall, North American companies continue to lead the way: they score an average of 48.9 out of 100 points, while European companies score 43.1 points. The data also reveals a growing gap within Europe. Large European companies (with annual revenue exceeding ten billion U.S. dollars) score 47.4 points, just 2.1 points behind their North American counterparts (49.5 points).

Are SMEs falling behind?

Smaller European companies (with annual revenue exceeding $500 million), on the other hand, lag significantly behind comparable North American firms by a margin of 7.6 points (40.5 vs. 48.1). This pronounced „long tail“ could undermine Europe’s competitiveness in the long term.

„Europe is clearly gaining ground when it comes to AI
in momentum—driven primarily by
”the largest companies."

Mauro Macchi,
CEO for Europe,
the Middle East and Africa,
Accenture

Mauro Macchi, CEO for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at Accenture, says: „Europe is clearly gaining momentum in the area of AI—driven primarily by the largest companies. These companies have recognized that AI can only create value quickly and comprehensively if the technology is accompanied by a holistic transformation of the organization, rather than being implemented in isolated, piecemeal ways. This involves adapting operating models, redesigning work processes, expanding data and technology infrastructure, and—crucially—strong leadership engagement and effective governance and change management.”.

While Europe has set out to catch up in the AI race, Germany risks being left even further behind. According to the figures, German companies tend to be treading water and, with a score of 41.2 points, have failed to improve—especially among small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which are so crucial to Germany as a business location. The study makes it clear: “Those who now go beyond pilot projects and consistently embed AI into their business models, processes, and organization will not only determine their own AI readiness, but also play a key role in deciding how competitive Germany will be as a business location over the next decade.” (Source: Accenture)