Riverbed: Agentic AI: High Ambition Meets Enterprise Readiness Gap in Autonomous IT Operations
Riverbed — 2026 — AI & Technology
Riverbed's Global Survey 2026 finds that ambition for AI-driven autonomous IT operations is effectively universal, yet most organizations are not enterprise-ready to realize that ambition. The research highlights three interrelated barriers—poor data quality, lack of unified observability across increasingly fragmented IT environments, and a dispersed technology stack requiring strategic consolidation—that prevent pilot efforts from scaling into reliable, secure, operational autonomy. The findings imply that without focused investment in data governance, cross-domain observability, and platform rationalization, enterprises risk underdelivering on agentic AI initiatives and exposing operations to inefficiency and elevated risk.
Key Statistics
- 100% of surveyed organizations expressed ambition for AI-driven autonomy.
- 3 foundational challenges were identified: data quality, unified observability, and technology-stack consolidation.
- Over 50% of organizations reported readiness gaps for enterprise-grade autonomous IT operations.
Key Takeaways
- Prioritize data governance and data quality programs to create reliable inputs for agentic AI models and autonomous workflows.
- Invest in unified observability tools and cross-domain telemetry to remove blind spots across fragmented IT environments before scaling autonomy.
- Consolidate and rationalize overlapping tooling to reduce complexity, lower integration costs, and enable consistent AI-driven decisioning.
- Start with controlled, high-value pilots that tie observability and data improvements to measurable operational outcomes, then scale iteratively.
Cite as: Riverbed. (2026). Riverbed: Agentic AI: High Ambition Meets Enterprise Readiness Gap in Autonomous IT Operations. Retrieved from https://research.agilebrandguide.com/reports/riverbed/riverbed-agentic-ai-high-ambition-meets-enterprise-readiness-gap-in-autonomous-it-operations