New research reveals that AI maturity in Europe and the Middle East has declined by 10 points, as enterprises struggle to keep pace with rapid innovation
ServiceNow, the AI platform for business transformation, has released its latest Enterprise AI Maturity Index in partnership with Oxford Economics. The findings reveal a surprising trend in Europe and the Middle East: although AI investment continues to grow, the average AI maturity score across the region has dropped by 10 points year over year. As enterprises struggle to keep pace with rapid innovation, many are finding it difficult to translate AI ambition into scalable, effective execution.
The index examines five key components: leadership and strategy, workflows, talent, governance, and investment. Together they provide a comprehensive view of how prepared organisations are to scale AI successfully; their AI maturity level.
Now in its second year, the global report draws on insights from almost 4,500 respondents globally, including 1,950 across nine markets in Europe and the Middle East, such as the UK, Germany, and France. It shows that emerging technologies such as agentic AI are fuelling experimentation and delivering early returns across Europe and the Middle East. However, the pace of change is moving faster than organisations’ ability to scale AI in a structured, governed way. To this end, the region’s average AI maturity score has dropped 10 points year on year, from 44 to just 34 out of 100.
Interestingly, Saudi Arabia’s AI maturity score of 33 is slightly below the European average of 34, showing a steady approach to adoption despite a notable year-on-year decline and a strong appetite for experimentation.
This automation empowers our teams to focus on strategic, value-adding activities. By integrating AI capabilities, we will further elevate our service quality and drive even higher levels of customer satisfaction.”
The report also outlines three major trends shaping the region’s AI journey and what’s needed to turn early success into lasting transformation.
There is a clear appetite for innovation, with nearly half (47%) of organisations in Europe and the Middle East launching more than 100 AI use cases in the past year. Saudi Arabia-based organisations are showing similar AI activity, with 49% having done so — reflecting a growing interest in large-scale experimentation.
Still, most remain in the early stages of implementation, as reflected in this year’s overall European AI maturity score of just 34. The majority of the region’s organisations are focused on experimentation and expansion, with only 6% reaching the augmentation stage, which is the most advanced stage identified in the survey. In Saudi Arabia, the AI maturity score stands at 33, with 7% of organisations progressing to the most advanced stage.
Agentic AI presents a clear opportunity
Agentic AI, the AI that can act autonomously, is positioned to reshape enterprise automation. However, awareness varies widely across the region. While 15% of organisations in Europe and the Middle East are already using agentic AI and 42% plan to implement it within 12 months, familiarity is still in its early days. Only one in five organisations are very family with agentic AI, revealing a significant knowledge gap.
The opportunity is clear, with over half of early adopters in Europe reporting improved gross margins (58%), greater efficiency and productivity (59%), and better experiences (60%).
Governance is the missing link
Rising adoption brings rising risk. AI at scale introduces serious challenges around cybersecurity, privacy, and regulatory compliance.
However, progress on governance has stalled in Europe and the Middle East. The number of organisations making significant strides in AI data governance has dropped from 45% to 42% year-on-year. Similarly, those succeeding in breaking down data and operational silos declined slightly from 43% to 42%. Just 36% of organisations in Saudi Arabia say they’ve made strong progress in AI data governance. This points to a need for greater focus on managing AI risk effectively.
The pause in progress on AI governance indicates organisations must place greater emphasis on this, given that data security is cited as the number one barrier to realising AI value. In Saudi Arabia, the top concern is the lack of structured oversight and management of AI utilisation, with data security ranking as the second most pressing issue.
To scale AI safely and effectively, governance must be foundational – not an afterthought. That means embedding policy, oversight, and accountability into platforms from the outset and approaching new technologies like agentic AI with a clear strategy in place.
