{"id":522298,"date":"2026-04-09T23:08:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T23:08:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/522298\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T23:08:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T23:08:16","slug":"research-suggests-ai-infrastructure-projects-are-worth-the-investment-less-than-30-of-the-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/522298\/","title":{"rendered":"Research suggests AI infrastructure projects are worth the investment less than 30% of the time"},"content":{"rendered":"<p id=\"elk-cad80f0a-5f6e-4851-a77d-1cd8ae1297b5\">Many AI proponents tout the tech for its potential to streamline complex tasks in the workplace, thereby boosting efficiency and productivity for humans. Unfortunately, recent research from Gartner suggests that&#8217;s far from the norm in practice.<\/p>\n<p>It turns out that one in five projects attempting to inject AI into IT infrastructure and operations (I&amp;O) fail, <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.outsystems.com\/1\/gartner-report-generative-ai\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.outsystems.com\/1\/gartner-report-generative-ai\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">according to Gartner&#8217;s figures<\/a> (via <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theregister.com\/2026\/04\/07\/ai_returns_gartner\/?td=rt-3a\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.theregister.com\/2026\/04\/07\/ai_returns_gartner\/?td=rt-3a\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Register<\/a>). Gartner&#8217;s research director, Melanie Freeze, puts much of this down to unrealistic expectations surrounding the tech&#8217;s capabilities.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"elk-seasonal\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-cad80f0a-5f6e-4851-a77d-1cd8ae1297b5-2\" class=\"paywall\" aria-hidden=\"true\">&#8220;The 20 percent failure rate is largely driven by AI initiatives that are either overly ambitious or poorly scoped,&#8221; she says, &#8220;AI that doesn&#8217;t fit into the organization&#8217;s operations simply can&#8217;t deliver [a return on investment].&#8221;<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-5d6a10fe-fd9d-42b8-9cdb-bd321e6d24e3\"><a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/we-need-a-better-name-for-ai-or-we-risk-talking-past-each-other-until-actually-intelligent-agi-comes-home-mooing\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/we-need-a-better-name-for-ai-or-we-risk-talking-past-each-other-until-actually-intelligent-agi-comes-home-mooing\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/we-need-a-better-name-for-ai-or-we-risk-talking-past-each-other-until-actually-intelligent-agi-comes-home-mooing\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">I&#8217;ve written before about how even the name &#8216;AI&#8217; can be misleading<\/a>; &#8216;AI&#8217; can refer to a broad range of tech, from videogame enemy behaviour to Large Language Models playing &#8216;yes, and&#8217;, then wraps it all up in scifi expectations. With that potential for confusion alone, it&#8217;s no wonder I&amp;O AI projects are frequently victims of overconfidence.<\/p>\n<p>Gartner surveyed 782 I&amp;O managers at the end of last year, with 57% of those interviewed readily admitting to at least one failed attempt to implement AI in their area of work. Melanie Freeze explains, &#8220;They assumed AI would immediately automate complex tasks, cut costs, or fix long\u2011standing operational issues. When expectations are not realistically set and the results don&#8217;t appear quickly, confidence drops and projects stall.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\" style=\"padding-top:56.25%;\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/8QG6qowV9HohRUVkZ65EVU.jpg\" alt=\"A digitally generated image of abstract AI chat speech bubbles overlaying a blue digital surface.\"   loading=\"lazy\" data-new-v2-image=\"true\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/8QG6qowV9HohRUVkZ65EVU.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/8QG6qowV9HohRUVkZ65EVU.jpg\" class=\"inline\"\/>\n<\/p>\n<p>(Image credit: Andriy Onufriyenko via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-53bd3e4c-74c8-4f84-b3d7-291c1adb0446\">Issues most frequently arose from AI agent-led workflow management and auto-remediation of security threats. 38% of those same I&amp;O managers cited skill gaps, poor data quality, and limited data access as stumbling blocks that lead to the failure of their AI projects.<\/p>\n<p>But there were apparently actual wins too, with 53% of managers reporting success in instances where more mature GenAI was applied to IT service management (ITSM) and cloud operations\u2026though, at the risk of sounding just a little bit cheeky, now is perhaps a good time to mention that self-report data isn&#8217;t always the most reliable.<\/p>\n<p class=\"newsletter-form__strapline\">Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.<\/p>\n<p>As such, due caution should be practiced by anyone attempting to incorporate AI into their workflow. For just one example of an AI hallucination horror story, last year, a lawyer was called out in a New York Supreme Court legal case for allegedly using<a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/a-lawyer-caught-using-ai-citations-and-quotes-in-a-supreme-court-legal-case-has-been-called-out-by-a-judge-for-defending-themselves-with-err-ai-citations-and-quotes\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/a-lawyer-caught-using-ai-citations-and-quotes-in-a-supreme-court-legal-case-has-been-called-out-by-a-judge-for-defending-themselves-with-err-ai-citations-and-quotes\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/a-lawyer-caught-using-ai-citations-and-quotes-in-a-supreme-court-legal-case-has-been-called-out-by-a-judge-for-defending-themselves-with-err-ai-citations-and-quotes\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"> &#8220;inaccurate citations and quotations&#8221; generated by an AI tool<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Those in the know about AI aren&#8217;t necessarily any safer either, with one <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/i-had-to-run-to-my-mac-mini-like-i-was-defusing-a-bomb-openclaw-ai-chose-to-speedrun-deleting-meta-ai-safety-directors-inbox-due-to-a-rookie-error\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/i-had-to-run-to-my-mac-mini-like-i-was-defusing-a-bomb-openclaw-ai-chose-to-speedrun-deleting-meta-ai-safety-directors-inbox-due-to-a-rookie-error\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/i-had-to-run-to-my-mac-mini-like-i-was-defusing-a-bomb-openclaw-ai-chose-to-speedrun-deleting-meta-ai-safety-directors-inbox-due-to-a-rookie-error\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">agent choosing to &#8216;speedrun&#8217; deleting Meta AI&#8217;s safety director&#8217;s inbox<\/a> due to a rookie mistake. The agent in question hailed from <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/theres-a-hot-new-personal-ai-in-town-that-can-send-texts-check-your-calendar-come-up-with-business-ideas-spend-your-money-and-leak-your-data-all-depends-how-you-use-it\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/theres-a-hot-new-personal-ai-in-town-that-can-send-texts-check-your-calendar-come-up-with-business-ideas-spend-your-money-and-leak-your-data-all-depends-how-you-use-it\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/theres-a-hot-new-personal-ai-in-town-that-can-send-texts-check-your-calendar-come-up-with-business-ideas-spend-your-money-and-leak-your-data-all-depends-how-you-use-it\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">OpenClaw<\/a> (previously Moltbot, and Clawdbot), the fastest-growing open source project on GitHub ever. It just goes to show that, once you give your personal accounts over to an AI agent, there&#8217;s no telling what it will do with them.<\/p>\n<p class=\"vanilla-image-block\" style=\"padding-top:56.26%;\">\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/BHcXLGQJZK2KwNBm4rT7oS.jpg\" alt=\"The OpenClaw logo, with its name and a catchphrase &quot;the AI that actually does things.&quot;\"   loading=\"lazy\" data-new-v2-image=\"true\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/BHcXLGQJZK2KwNBm4rT7oS.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/BHcXLGQJZK2KwNBm4rT7oS.jpg\" class=\"inline\"\/>\n<\/p>\n<p>(Image credit: OpenClaw)<\/p>\n<p id=\"elk-658210ea-1311-40e5-aab7-94f7d0c0db9b\">Inbox mismanagement like this isn&#8217;t just embarrassing; it could also pose a huge security risk\u2014it&#8217;s a good thing the agent didn&#8217;t also leak the Meta AI safety director&#8217;s emails, for instance. Along similarly sweat-inducing lines, earlier this year, <a data-analytics-id=\"inline-link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/a-human-software-engineer-rejected-an-ai-agents-code-change-request-only-for-the-ai-agent-to-retaliate-by-publishing-an-angry-blog-about-him\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-url=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/a-human-software-engineer-rejected-an-ai-agents-code-change-request-only-for-the-ai-agent-to-retaliate-by-publishing-an-angry-blog-about-him\/\" data-hl-processed=\"none\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"inline-link\" data-before-rewrite-localise=\"https:\/\/www.pcgamer.com\/software\/ai\/a-human-software-engineer-rejected-an-ai-agents-code-change-request-only-for-the-ai-agent-to-retaliate-by-publishing-an-angry-blog-about-him\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">an AI agent posted an &#8216;angry&#8217; blog post<\/a> making all sorts of wild claims about the human engineer who rejected its code change request. Bottom line, caution is always advised if you&#8217;re thinking about using something agentic for even just personal use.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/YwnnY4PZ7TcCYKRYDho7VW.jpg\" alt=\"Razer Blade 16 gaming laptop\"   class=\"person__avatar image-wrapped__image image__image\" loading=\"lazy\" data-normal=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/YwnnY4PZ7TcCYKRYDho7VW.jpg\" data-original-mos=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/YwnnY4PZ7TcCYKRYDho7VW.jpg\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/YwnnY4PZ7TcCYKRYDho7VW.jpg\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\" data-slice-image=\"true\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Best gaming rigs 2026<\/p>\n<p>All our favorite gear<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Many AI proponents tout the tech for its potential to streamline complex tasks in the workplace, thereby boosting&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":522299,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[554,733,4308,86,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-522298","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-artificial-intelligence","8":"tag-ai","9":"tag-artificial-intelligence","10":"tag-artificialintelligence","11":"tag-technology","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom","14":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/522298","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=522298"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/522298\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/522299"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=522298"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=522298"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=522298"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}