{"id":448537,"date":"2026-05-14T13:55:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T13:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/448537\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T13:55:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T13:55:09","slug":"majority-of-smbs-remain-in-early-stages-of-ai-maturity-study-says","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/448537\/","title":{"rendered":"Majority of SMBs remain in early stages of AI maturity, study says"},"content":{"rendered":"

SMBs need practical solutions over hype to bridge the gap between AI readiness and reality <\/p>\n

CARY, N.C., May 14, 2026 \/PRNewswire\/ — Nearly 70% of small and midsized businesses (SMBs)\u00a0still\u00a0remain\u00a0in the experimental or opportunistic stages of AI maturity, despite growing investment and widespread use of AI tools. The\u00a0research comes from a new\u00a0global report<\/a> commissioned\u00a0by SAS, a leader in data and AI, and IDC.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"New<\/a><\/p>\n

New research reveals how SMBs can bridge the gap between AI readiness and reality.<\/p>\n

AI for SMBs: Closing the Readiness\u2011Reality Gap\u00a0is based on a global survey of more than 1,600 SMB leaders across 28 countries.\u00a0It not only reveals a critical disconnect between AI\u00a0aspirations\u00a0and organizational\u00a0readiness but\u00a0offers SMBs a practical roadmap to move from AI experimentation to\u00a0real business\u00a0impact.\u00a0Today’s technology landscape surrounds companies of all sizes with stories of AI’s potential, but many SMBs\u00a0do not yet have the\u00a0data foundation, strategy,\u00a0skills\u00a0and governance in place\u00a0to effectively\u00a0scale AI within their own business to deliver\u00a0tangible\u00a0results.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

“To actually make something of their AI strategy, SMBs need to move from disconnected pilots to\u00a0true alignment of their data,\u00a0people and resources,”\u00a0said\u00a0Daniel-Zoe Jimenez, Vice President, Research\u00a0from IDC.\u00a0“Experimenting with\u00a0the technology\u00a0is one thing. Deploying it strategically\u00a0and sustainably\u00a0is quite another.”\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Although survey respondents hail from small and midsized businesses in several sectors, the report offers deeper analysis for five spotlight industries: banking, insurance, government, health care and life sciences. The report highlights obstacles each of these industries face, from fragmented data and inconsistent execution to regulatory challenges and limited organization-wide adoption, that hinder the scaling of AI across their organizations.<\/p>\n

Banking is ahead on AI strategy and governance, but most still struggle to turn pilots into consistent, organization wide impact.
\n Insurance is actively using AI for real business problems, yet fragmented data and uneven execution keep many from scaling what works.
\n Government organizations show strong planning and oversight for AI, but legacy systems and data silos continue to slow execution.
\n Health care is experimenting with AI to improve efficiency, but data complexity, regulation, and skills gaps keep adoption at an early stage.
\n Life sciences see high AI potential, but complex data environments and regulatory demands limit widespread adoption beyond specialized teams. <\/p>\n

The readiness-reality gap \u00a0
The majority of\u00a0SMBs are in what the report classifies as\u00a0experimental or opportunistic stages of AI adoption. These businesses are\u00a0using AI\u00a0in\u00a0disconnected\u00a0implementations across their organizations, but they’ve yet to bring those pieces together into a unified strategy. This is the readiness-reality gap, according to the report,\u00a0where\u00a0AI aspirations alone\u00a0aren’t\u00a0enough to transform\u00a0intention\u00a0into\u00a0outcomes.\u00a0Key findings highlight that while SMB leaders are increasingly motivated to use AI, many struggle with:\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fragmented data and tools.\u00a0
\n Isolated AI initiatives.\u00a0
\n Limited skills and organizational readiness.
\n Insufficient governance and ROI measures.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

A practical growth framework
The report introduces the\u00a0AI Readiness Index, a\u00a0framework for evaluating SMBs’ readiness across\u00a0planning, building,\u00a0enabling\u00a0and executing.\u00a0As they progress across these areas, SMBs navigate four stages of maturity: Experimental, Opportunistic,\u00a0Structured\u00a0and Integrated. The Index then provides a clear, diagnostic lens through which SMBs can evaluate how their organization is progressing and map their path forward to implementing AI\u00a0to\u00a0meet their unique business needs.\u00a0The\u00a0research underscores the growing need for integrated AI platforms and trusted partners, particularly for SMBs with limited IT resources and greater exposure to change.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“SMBs\u00a0don’t\u00a0need more hype. What they need are results that translate into a meaningful return on their AI investments,” said John Carey, Senior Vice President of Global Channels at SAS.\u00a0“This research shows that AI adoption is already widespread, but operationalizing AI\u00a0at the company level\u00a0remains\u00a0a challenge.\u00a0SAS outlines a path forward with tools and resources that make sense for SMB customers.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Alongside the report, SAS has launched an\u00a0AI Readiness\u00a0Calculator\u00a0for SMBs, enabling organizations to evaluate their current maturity,\u00a0identify\u00a0gaps\u00a0and receive personalized recommendations for next steps based on\u00a0their\u00a0size and readiness level.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Dive deeper into the results: https:\/\/www.sas.com\/en\/offers\/ai-readiness-report-for-small-and-midsize-businesses.html<\/a><\/p>\n

About SAS<\/a><\/p>\n

SAS is a global leader in data and AI, helping organizations make confident decisions with AI they can trust. For decades, SAS has set the standard for delivering software that drives meaningful impact, incorporating deep industry expertise, transparency and governance. SAS gives you THE POWER TO KNOW\u00ae.<\/p>\n

SAS and all other SAS Institute Inc. product or service names are registered trademarks or trademarks of SAS Institute Inc. in the USA and other countries. \u00ae indicates USA registration. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective companies. Copyright \u00a9 2026 SAS Institute Inc. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n

SOURCE SAS<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SMBs need practical solutions over hype to bridge the gap between AI readiness and reality CARY, N.C., May…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":448538,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[61,60,102370,80],"class_list":["post-448537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-technology","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-sas","tag-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=448537"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/448537\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/448538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=448537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=448537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=448537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}