Dubai, United Arab Emirates:  Roland Berger Middle East today announced the release of its latest report, “AI across the Gulf: From ambition to scalable impact”, offering a comprehensive enterprise-level assessment of artificial intelligence (AI) adoption across the GCC.  

Based on insights from C-suite and Director-level decision makers, the study moves beyond national strategies to examine how organizations are translating AI ambition into operational reality and where execution continues to fall short. 

The report provides a holistic picture of AI adoption across both public and private sectors, with detailed market perspectives on Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar. It also offers practical recommendations tailored to the region’s evolving digital landscape. 

AI Moves from Aspiration to Strategic Priority 

Findings show that AI has become a strategic priority across the Gulf. Nearly 80% of surveyed organizations have embedded AI into their strategic plans, reflecting the region’s accelerating digital maturity.  

All six GCC countries, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman, now have either adopted national AI strategies or are in the process of developing them, underscoring AI’s growing role as a catalyst for competitiveness, economic diversification, and public sector modernization. 

Investment momentum shows strength. Eighty-five percent of organizations expect AI budgets to rise in 2026, with nearly 40% anticipating significant increases.  

Generative AI has emerged as the leading technology focus, cited by 35% of respondents, driven by its immediate business impact, visible productivity gains, and ease of adoption. At the same time, many organizations are shifting toward multi-vendor AI ecosystems to balance flexibility, compliance, and performance. 

Value Creation Is Clear: Scaling Remains the Challenge 

Organizations increasingly view AI as a driver of tangible business value, supporting faster decision-making, improved customer and citizen experiences, new revenue opportunities, and stronger risk management. Enhancing customer and citizen experience now ranks as the top AI priority, cited by 46% of respondents. 

However, the report highlights a growing execution gap. While AI strategies are widespread, operational readiness remains limited. Only one-third of organizations have an enterprise-wide data strategy, and fewer than one in three have the operating model and formal governance needed to scale. Only 28% have a dedicated AI ethics or compliance board in place. 

Key barriers include data quality challenges, technology readiness gaps, limited funding beyond pilot initiatives, resistance to change, weak cross-functional collaboration, and ongoing talent shortages, particularly when it comes to integrating AI into everyday workflows. 

Public Sector Advances Faster Than Private Enterprises 

Public sector organizations are moving ahead more rapidly, with over 90% reporting an AI strategy in place or under development, compared to 75% in the private sector.  

National mandates and digital government programs are accelerating adoption, while private organizations face greater challenges around talent, collaboration, and funding. Public sector leaders, meanwhile, continue to navigate structural constraints related to data integration, legacy systems, and regulation. 

A Practical Roadmap for Enterprise Adoption 

To help organizations move from experimentation to scale, the report outlines a clear set of actions focused on execution rather than experimentation, including conducting organization-wide AI readiness assessments, translating strategy into business-led roadmaps with defined ownership and KPIs, strengthening data and technology foundations, establishing cross-functional delivery teams supported by central AI Centers of Excellence, and embedding AI outcomes into daily operations and performance management frameworks. 

Nizar Hneini, Managing Director and Head of Digital and Services, Roland Berger Middle East, said “This report is a wake-up call for the region. As AI becomes central to economic diversification and digital transformation agendas, the GCC is positioning itself not just as an adopter, but as a contributor to global AI innovation. With strategies largely in place, the focus now shifts to building the operational foundations required for sustained impact. Our findings show what it takes to move beyond pilots and deliver enterprise-scale impact and why organizations need to act now.” 

Download the full report here: AI across the Gulf: From ambition to scalable impact | Roland Berger

About Roland Berger 

Roland Berger is one of the world's leading strategy consultancies with a wide-ranging service portfolio for all relevant industries and business functions. Founded in 1967, Roland Berger is headquartered in Munich. Renowned for its expertise in transformation, innovation across all industries and performance improvement, the consultancy has set itself the goal of embedding sustainability in all its projects. Roland Berger generated revenues of around 1 billion euros in 2024. 

Press contact 
Donna Rice, Marketing Director | Middle East 
donna.rice@rolandberger.com