Tata Communications Limited, in partnership with Bloomberg Media Studios, published a global report titled Building Durable AI Advantage based on a survey of 501 senior executives across North America, Europe, and Asia. The study found that 77% of enterprise leaders treat artificial intelligence as a board-level priority, yet 65% continue to operate on legacy or developing infrastructure not built for enterprise AI workloads. Only 29% of respondents said their infrastructure can scale with evolving business demands.
The report identifies five interconnected systems — Foundation, Integration, Skills, Governance, and ROI — that determine whether AI investment compounds in value or plateaus. Lasting performance depends on alignment across all five loops; when any one stalls, constraints spread and momentum weakens.
On infrastructure modernisation, fewer than half of enterprises have fully modernised network connectivity, hybrid deployment flexibility, or data architecture. Enterprises operating on advanced infrastructure are nearly twice as likely to report high business value from AI compared with those on legacy systems.
Integration challenges emerged as a significant barrier, with 28% of leaders citing difficulty integrating AI with legacy systems as a primary roadblock. A further 38% said integration concerns contribute to delays in approval and procurement cycles, while 67% view seamless blending of digital automation and human interaction as critical to AI execution.
Skill gaps are a constraint for 30% of enterprises as a primary barrier to realising AI value, rising to 45% among enterprises with revenues above $5 billion. On governance, 42% identified security and compliance reviews as the largest source of approval delays, followed by integration concerns and procurement complexity at 38% each. Nine in 10 enterprises see some value from modernisation, but more than six in ten have not reached optimal outcomes.
Sumeet Walia, President and Chief Revenue Officer at Tata Communications, said the real differentiator is no longer AI itself but the infrastructure and integration that enable AI to deliver value at scale. He added that AI is accelerating the convergence of compute, power, connectivity, and platforms into one unified infrastructure.
Disclaimer: This article is based on company filings submitted to the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) and is for informational purposes only. It does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation. Investors should conduct their own research and consult a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions.