Almost 75 per cent of global companies plan to integrate “agentic” artificial intelligence into their operations by 2028, driving a market explosion from $8.5 billion today to $45 billion by the end of the decade.
In a report released at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos today, Deloitte revealed that 74 per cent of organisations are preparing to deploy autonomous agents, systems capable of reasoning, planning and executing multi-step tasks without human intervention.
Costi Perricos, Global GenAI Business Leader at Deloitte, stated that these agents are already being used to streamline tasks in sectors ranging from finance to aviation.
“Agentic AI adoption is accelerating, but enterprises should redesign workflows and governance models to effectively integrate and orchestrate autonomous systems,” Perricos said.
However, the report warns of a significant “governance gap”. Despite these agents’ ability to initiate actions and interface directly with customers, only 21 per cent of surveyed leaders currently have a mature governance model in place for them.
Physical AI enters the real world
Beyond software, the report highlights the rapid rise of “physical AI”—robotics and sensor-based systems that bring autonomy into the real world.
More than half (58 per cent) of respondents said their companies are already using physical AI, with adoption projected to hit 80 per cent within two years.
The Asia Pacific region is currently leading this wave, driving widespread integration of robotics and autonomous vehicles.
“The practical realities of deploying physical AI… illustrate why current deployments have focused on controlled settings such as factories and warehouses,” the report notes.
The rise of ‘Sovereign AI’
Geopolitics is also increasingly shaping enterprise technology decisions, with “sovereign AI” — the push for domestic control over data and infrastructure — rising up the agenda.
Nearly 77 per cent of leaders surveyed said the location of AI development is now a key factor when choosing new technologies.
The report found a stark regional divide: only 11 per cent of companies in the Americas rely on foreign-sourced solutions for the majority of their AI stack, compared to 32 per cent in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.
“Sovereign AI has become a strategic challenge for multinational organisations, which must navigate complex requirements that vary by country,” Perricos added.
