Cisco Report Highlights AI Readiness Gap Among Global Enterprises

Cisco Systems, Inc. announced in a press release the findings of its third annual Cisco AI Readiness Index, revealing that only 13% of organizations—termed 'Pacesetters'—have consistently outperformed peers in achieving measurable value from AI over the past three years.

The report, based on a global survey of more than 8,000 AI leaders across 30 markets and 26 industries, found that AI-ready companies are four times more likely to move pilot projects into production and 50% more likely to realize tangible business value from their AI initiatives.

Cisco noted a sharp rise in interest in agentic AI, with 83% of respondents planning to deploy AI agents and nearly 40% expecting them to work alongside employees within a year. However, many organizations still lack the secure infrastructure needed to support such deployments.

Key barriers identified include increasing workloads, limited GPU capacity, and insufficient centralized data management, which together risk slowing innovation and scaling efforts.