NTT Data: Beyond Infrastructure: Cloud-Led Innovation in the AI Era
NTT Data — 2026 — AI & Technology
The NTT Data report emphasizes the critical role of cloud infrastructure in maximizing the potential of AI technologies. It reveals a significant gap between organizations' cloud ambitions and their actual capabilities, suggesting that those who fail to evolve their cloud foundations risk limiting their AI investments. The research highlights the importance of integrating cloud and AI strategies, addressing skill shortages, and adopting a platform-led operating model to drive innovation and business value.
Key Statistics
- Cloud leaders are nearly 2.5 times more likely to deliver revenue growth exceeding 10%.
- 61% of Chief AI Officers agree that the rise of agentic AI has increased the need for cloud investment.
- 99% of organizations expect private cloud adoption to increase due to concerns about data sovereignty, ownership, cost, and security.
- 62% of organizations expect the impact and ROI of agentic AI for cloud-native application modernization to fall short of expectations.
- 49% of organizations execute Site Reliability Engineering practices entirely through a service provider.
Key Takeaways
- Establish a joint Cloud and AI steering committee to align objectives and key results for AI-driven cloud initiatives.
- Develop a unified talent strategy to address the AI skills gap within cloud engineering and operations teams.
- Conduct comprehensive architecture assessments before new AI initiatives to evaluate data residency, security, and performance requirements.
- Shift cloud transformation KPIs from technical metrics to business outcomes that measure the impact of AI on strategic objectives.
- Implement a proactive risk management and governance framework for AI, including regular threat modeling and continuous monitoring.
Cite as: NTT Data. (2026). NTT Data: Beyond Infrastructure: Cloud-Led Innovation in the AI Era. Retrieved from https://research.agilebrandguide.com/research/ntt-data-beyond-infrastructure-cloud-led-innovation-in-the-ai-era