Agentic AI returns in India set to grow fivefold to $14.4 mn in two years: SAP report
Synopsis
India's agentic AI returns are on track to grow fivefold to $14.4 million in just two years, with AI ROI set to nearly double to 40 per cent, according to SAP. With 55 per cent of Indian firms already appointing dedicated AI leaders — the highest share globally — India is not just adopting enterprise AI, it is increasingly setting the pace for the rest of the world.
Key Takeaways
Agentic AI returns in India are projected to grow fivefold to $14.4 million within two years, per a SAP report dated 12 June .
AI ROI is expected to rise from 22 per cent to approximately 40 per cent in the same period.
Indian organisations plan to invest $25.9 million in AI, with spending forecast to grow 45 per cent over two years.
55 per cent of Indian organisations have appointed dedicated AI leaders — the highest share globally .
Data readiness jumped from 42 per cent to 63 per cent year-on-year, the fastest improvement worldwide.
80 per cent of respondents say maximising AI value requires workforce transformation beyond upskilling.
Agentic AI returns in India are projected to grow fivefold to $14.4 million within two years, while overall AI return on investment (ROI) is expected to nearly double from 22 per cent to approximately 40 per cent, according to a report released on Friday, 12 June. The findings, from enterprise application firm SAP, signal that Indian organisations are rapidly transitioning from AI experimentation to value-driven, strategic implementation.
India's AI Investment Ambitions
Indian organisations plan to invest $25.9 million in AI, with spending expected to grow by 45 per cent over the next two years, according to the report. India currently ranks second worldwide in strategic approaches to AI investment — a position underpinned by the fact that 71 per cent of Indian businesses already have a defined AI strategy aligned with their business goals.
AI currently supports 33 per cent of business tasks across surveyed organisations, a figure expected to rise to 51 per cent within two years. End-to-end, cross-functional AI adoption is forecast to more than double, reaching 40 per cent in the same period.
Agentic AI and Operational Transformation
A striking 85 per cent of Indian firms surveyed believe agentic AI will transform their business operations. Around 67 per cent are already piloting agentic use cases, reflecting a decisive shift from theoretical adoption to active deployment.
Notably, 55 per cent of Indian organisations have appointed dedicated AI leaders — the highest share globally. This governance push coincides with a sharp improvement in data readiness: 63 per cent of organisations now consider themselves data-ready for AI, up from 42 per cent last year, marking the highest year-on-year growth worldwide.
ROI Confidence and Workforce Transformation
Around 74 per cent of Indian businesses reported satisfaction with their current AI ROI, with value creation emerging as the primary measure of success. However, the report also highlights that 80 per cent of respondents agreed that maximising AI value requires workforce transformation that goes beyond conventional upskilling — pointing to deeper organisational restructuring ahead.
What Industry Leaders Are Saying
Manish Prasad, President and Managing Director of SAP Indian Subcontinent, said: 'Customers are moving decisively beyond experimentation, embedding AI into the core of their business and making it a strategic priority.' He added that India's strong digital foundation, deep talent pool, and vibrant innovation ecosystem uniquely position the country to lead the next wave of enterprise transformation and define how AI delivers real business value globally.
What This Means Going Forward
This comes amid a broader global race to operationalise AI at scale, with India emerging as a front-runner in enterprise adoption metrics. The convergence of rising data readiness, dedicated AI leadership, and aggressive investment timelines suggests the next two years will be pivotal in determining whether India's AI ambitions translate into measurable economic output. Execution quality — particularly on workforce transformation — will be the critical variable to watch.
Point of View
But the SAP report surfaces a tension that deserves scrutiny: 74 per cent of businesses claim ROI satisfaction, yet 80 per cent acknowledge that realising AI's full value demands workforce transformation well beyond upskilling. Those two data points do not sit easily together. The risk is that current ROI satisfaction reflects efficiency gains at the margins — automation of narrow tasks — rather than the structural business model reinvention that agentic AI ultimately demands. India's lead in dedicated AI leadership appointments is encouraging, but leadership without a clear workforce transition roadmap is governance theatre. The real test arrives when AI expands from supporting 33 per cent to 51 per cent of business tasks — and displaced workers need more than a reskilling workshop.
NationPress
28 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the SAP report say about agentic AI returns in India?
The SAP report, released on 12 June, projects that agentic AI returns in India will grow fivefold to $14.4 million within two years. Overall AI ROI is expected to rise from 22 per cent to approximately 40 per cent in the same timeframe.
How much are Indian organisations planning to invest in AI?
Indian organisations plan to invest $25.9 million in AI, with spending expected to grow by 45 per cent over the next two years, according to the SAP report.
Why does India rank second globally in AI investment strategy?
India ranks second worldwide in strategic approaches to AI investment because 71 per cent of Indian businesses have a defined AI strategy aligned with business goals, and 55 per cent have appointed dedicated AI leaders — the highest proportion globally.
What is agentic AI and why does it matter for Indian businesses?
Agentic AI refers to AI systems that can autonomously plan and execute multi-step tasks with minimal human intervention. According to the SAP report, 85 per cent of Indian firms believe it will transform their business operations, and 67 per cent are already piloting agentic use cases.
What challenges remain in India's AI adoption journey?
Despite strong ROI satisfaction, 80 per cent of surveyed organisations agreed that maximising AI value requires workforce transformation beyond conventional upskilling. This points to deeper organisational and structural changes that most businesses have yet to fully address.
