Survey Finds Technology Partners Predict Major Revenue Shift to AI with Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, and Customer Experience as Key Drivers

Rhea-AI Summary

Cisco's Global AI Partners Study reveals significant revenue shifts towards AI technologies in the coming years. Over 25% of partners anticipate 76-100% of their revenue will stem from AI-related technologies in the next 4-5 years. The study highlights infrastructure (54%), cybersecurity (48%), and customer experience (30%) as the top drivers of AI technology demand.

Partners show confidence in their AI deployment capabilities but recognize challenges like inexperience with new technologies (62%) and lack of knowledge of systems and processes (56%). To address these, nearly 80% are investing in upskilling employees through internal and external training.

The study, surveying over 1,500 IT partners across 29 markets, aligns with Cisco's AI Readiness Index, emphasizing the important role partners play in helping customers achieve AI readiness. It underscores the need for strengthening practical deployment capabilities to leverage the opportunities in the AI era.

News Summary:

• More than a quarter of partners believe that 76-100% of their revenue will come from AI technologies over the next 4-5 years.
• Partners identified infrastructure, cybersecurity, and customer experience as the primary drivers of AI technology demand, presenting the greatest revenue opportunities.
• Partners show confidence about their knowledge and understanding in helping customers deploy AI solutions and are investing in upskilling.

SAN JOSE, Calif., Oct. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cisco, the worldwide leader in networking and security, released findings from its new Cisco Global AI Partners Study. The study, Bridging the Customer AI Readiness Gap – The opportunities ahead for partners, revealed that IT partners around the world are anticipating a transformative wave of AI technology demand that will drive the majority of their revenue over the next four to five years. According to the study, more than a quarter (27%) of the partners surveyed believe that as much as 76-100% of their revenue will come from AI-related technologies during this period.

The study highlights that 42% of partners believe the demand for AI-related technology investments will grow by more than 75% in the next four to five years. The partners surveyed for the report, highlighted infrastructure (54%), cybersecurity (48%), and customer experience (30%) as the top three drivers of AI technology demand in the coming years.  As AI demand surges, partners also foresee a significant shift in their revenue mix. In the short-term, 38% anticipate AI will contribute to 26-50% of their revenue a year from now, while in the long run that contribution is expected to become even higher.

"The potential for AI to transform business operations is immense and realizing this requires a concerted effort to strengthen our partners' practical deployment capabilities," said Alex Pujols, VP, Global Partner Engineering, Cisco. "This study highlights the significant revenue opportunities for IT partners to lead AI deployment. By focusing on AI readiness, Cisco and its valued partner ecosystem are well-positioned to drive transformative outcomes for our customers and leverage the opportunities of the AI era."

The Cisco Global AI Partners Study, a double-blind survey of over 1,500 IT partners across 29 markets, assesses partners' capabilities in the age of AI. These findings align with the Cisco AI Readiness Index, which found that companies globally lack readiness for AI adoption, revealing gaps in infrastructure, data management, governance, and talent. Built on the insights from the Index, the Cisco Global AI Partners Study reinforces the crucial role partners play in helping customers achieve AI readiness.

Partners Show Confidence and Invest in Overcoming Challenges
The findings indicate a robust confidence among partners in their knowledge and understanding of various aspects related to AI technologies. The assessment focused on several specific solutions and capabilities for AI deployment across the four pillars of infrastructure, data, governance, and talent.

These capabilities include:

• Building scalable and adaptable AI-ready infrastructure;
• Ensuring sufficient GPU resources for ongoing projects;
• Assessing and maintaining latency and throughput of data centers;
• Understanding data sets, data sovereignty and privacy laws across different regions/countries.

While partners show strong confidence in their knowledge and understanding of deploying AI technologies, they also understand the challenges they need to address to maximize the opportunities ahead. The biggest ones are inexperience in deploying new technologies (62%), lack of knowledge of systems and processes (56%), and a lack of available technologies (53%). To address these challenges, partners are already heavily investing in upskilling existing employees in AI-related competencies, with almost 80% conducting either internal trainings or inviting external vendors to provide specialized training.

For more information on the Cisco Global AI Partners Study and to access the full report, please visit https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/m/en_us/solutions/ai/readiness-index/documents/cisco-global-ai-partners-study.pdf.

About Cisco
Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide technology leader that securely connects everything to make anything possible. Our purpose is to power an inclusive future for all by helping our customers reimagine their applications, power hybrid work, secure their enterprise, transform their infrastructure, and meet their sustainability goals. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on X at @Cisco.

Cisco and the Cisco logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Cisco and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. A listing of Cisco's trademarks can be found at www.cisco.com/go/trademarks. Third-party trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. The use of the word partner does not imply a partnership relationship between Cisco and any other company. 

 

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SOURCE Cisco

FAQ

What percentage of revenue do Cisco partners expect from AI technologies in the next 4-5 years?

According to the Cisco Global AI Partners Study, 27% of partners believe that 76-100% of their revenue will come from AI-related technologies in the next 4-5 years.

What are the top three drivers of AI technology demand according to Cisco's study?

The study identifies infrastructure (54%), cybersecurity (48%), and customer experience (30%) as the top three drivers of AI technology demand in the coming years.

How are Cisco partners addressing challenges in AI deployment?

To address challenges in AI deployment, almost 80% of Cisco partners are investing in upskilling existing employees through internal trainings or inviting external vendors to provide specialized training in AI-related competencies.

What is the biggest challenge for Cisco partners in deploying AI technologies?

The biggest challenge for Cisco (CSCO) partners in deploying AI technologies is inexperience in deploying new technologies, cited by 62% of respondents in the Global AI Partners Study.

How many IT partners were surveyed in Cisco's Global AI Partners Study?

The Cisco Global AI Partners Study surveyed over 1,500 IT partners across 29 markets to assess partners' capabilities in the age of AI.