The latest research from Dell Technologies shows that businesses in South Africa are increasingly viewing artificial intelligence (AI) as a strategic priority.

The results of the survey were revealed at Dell Technologies’ annual Forum event, which took place earlier this month at the Kyalami International Convention Centre.

The findings of the study reinforced the main theme of the Forum, which focused on empowering South African organisations to harness AI for real-world impact by shifting from theoretical discussions to actionable strategies.

 “South African companies are at a tipping point. The ambition to enhance processes, customer experience, and decision-making through AI is clear, but turning that ambition into large-scale, reliable, and ethical AI applications remains a significant challenge,’’ said Habib Mahakian, Vice President for Southern and Sub-Saharan Africa, Dell Technologies.

‘’The biggest hurdle is not just the technology, but also the people and processes around it. AI requires trust, new skillsets, and innovative ways of working. At Dell Technologies, we are committed to helping organisations bridge these gaps with the right technology, expertise, and industry collaborations,” he continued.

The global study, which surveyed 2,850 business and IT decision-makers, of which 50 were from South Africa, found that 92% of South African companies now view it as a ‘key part’ of their business strategy. Additionally, 32% of South African organisations report seeing tangible productivity and financial returns from initial AI investments.

Despite the promising indicators mentioned above, 94% of businesses in South Africa struggle to fully integrate AI into every aspect of their operations, while 42% are still in the early-to-mid stages of their AI adoption journey.

Challenges such as data security concerns, lack of executive/senior management buy-in, and integration with existing systems/infrastructure continue to hinder large-scale implementation. 

The research highlights that while South African companies are making strides toward AI adoption, scaling AI effectively across an enterprise requires a holistic approach. Building infrastructure that supports AI, fostering new skillsets, and prioritising secure and ethical practices are key.

Barriers to AI Implementation

The survey further found that while the interest in AI continues to grow, progress is hindered by three persistent challenges:

1. Skills Gap: Alarmingly, 100% of the South African companies surveyed believe their teams lack the necessary skills to fully leverage AI. This marks a sharp increase in concerns compared to previous years, especially surrounding the safe implementation of GenAI, an area where 72% of South African organisations report insufficient knowledge.

2. Security Concerns: The pressure to innovate is often tempered by increasing worries about security risks. 76% of South African companies expressed fears about exposing sensitive corporate data and intellectual property to third-party AI tools, a significant rise from 64% last year. Additionally, 62% of the organisations highlight that it is a challenge to find a balance between innovation and mitigating cybersecurity risks.

3. Infrastructure Readiness: Many companies find their current IT environments inadequate for the demands of AI workloads. Challenges include increasing processing power (e.g. CPUs/GPUs), implementing AI-optimised hardware, and enhancing data security. Without addressing these issues, AI integration efforts will continue to face delays.

Aligning AI Innovation with Sustainability Goals

An encouraging trend revealed in the report is the increasing link between AI and sustainability goals. Businesses are exploring AI’s potential to optimise energy efficiency – such as smarter data centre management, minimising idle workloads and moving inferencing tasks to edge computing environments.  

From advanced cooling solutions to energy-aware AI architectures, Dell Technologies is helping organisations reduce their environmental impact with AI infrastructure that balances performance with energy efficiency.

This year, many of the conversations and ideas shared have been around grappling with AI and making it work in tangible business settings. It seems like while most if not all recognise that AI is here to stay, and growing in its influence, the question remains how to best come to terms with it, use it, benefit from it, and make it work for one’s business.

All indications are that 2026 will follow this trend, with AI continuing to dominate conversations. Hopefully by this time next year, and by Dell Technologies Forum event in 2026, even more progress will have been made.   

For the complete findings of this year’s Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research, visit this Link.