Our UK Voice of Our Clients research has revealed how AI ambition is increasingly being shaped by questions of data sovereignty, control and resilience
As data sovereignty rises up the technology agenda, our 2026 Voice of Our Clients findings offer a timely perspective on how UK organisations are balancing AI ambition with the need for control, trust and resilience.
Based on our in-depth interviews with business and technology executives in the UK, the research finds that 59% of organisations are strongly focused on sovereignty and localisation when optimising cloud adoption and value delivery, while 41% now have an enterprise-wide artificial intelligence (AI) strategy. The combination is significant. As organisations look to scale AI beyond individual use cases, decisions about where data is held, how it is governed and how control is maintained are becoming more closely connected to AI strategy.
Technology and digital acceleration remains the leading macro trend for UK executives, with 74% saying it is having a significant impact on their organisation, up from 72% in 2025. Our findings point to a new phase of digital growth. As organisations move from experimentation towards broader enterprise adoption, the focus is increasingly shifting towards how AI can be integrated with trusted data, modern technology environments and effective governance to support sustained value.
For UK organisations, the opportunity is to connect AI investment more closely with the technology foundations and operating environments that support critical services, helping innovation scale while maintaining control, continuity and trust.
Tara McGeehan, President of CGI in the UK and Australia, sees this as an important next phase in AI adoption. While the ambition is clear, she says the focus now is on moving confidently from individual use cases to trusted, operational deployment at scale.
“The opportunity is bigger than AI alone. It is about making sure the technology, data and operating foundations are in place to support change at pace, while building governance, sovereignty and resilience into transformation from the outset, and of course keeping appropriate human oversight as AI becomes more embedded in critical processes.”
Bringing these elements together can help organisations use AI and automation to improve productivity, release capacity and create measurable business and service outcomes, while protecting the critical operations they depend on.
Modern foundations support AI at scale
For many organisations, scaling AI will depend on how effectively new capabilities connect with the technology and data environments already supporting essential business processes. Modernisation does not necessarily mean replacing an entire technology estate. It can involve simplifying architectures, modernising priority applications, improving integration and making trusted data more accessible while maintaining the stability of critical services. As AI moves deeper into business processes, these foundations become increasingly important. With 41% of UK organisations now having an enterprise-wide AI strategy, the next opportunity is to connect that ambition with the skills, data, governance, technology foundations and operating models needed to achieve measurable outcomes.
Sovereignty is becoming a broader question of control
The prominence of sovereignty and localisation in our UK findings is particularly relevant as organisations consider how greater use of AI changes their requirements around data, infrastructure and control. Organisations are considering not only cost, capability and speed, but where critical information is held, how it is governed and how appropriate control is maintained across platforms, partners and suppliers. As AI systems draw on larger volumes of organisational data and support a wider range of decisions and services, these questions of control, governance and trust become increasingly important. For organisations, this means treating sovereignty not simply as a question of location, but as part of a wider approach to how critical technology and data are managed.
Resilience becomes part of the growth case
Our research also shows that organisations are strengthening their ability to operate and grow in an increasingly interconnected environment.
A third of UK executives (33%) say global economic and supply-chain disruption is having a significant impact on their organisation, compared with 26% in 2025 and 10% in 2022. In manufacturing, the figure rises to 67%. This reinforces the value of digital platforms, data and AI that improve visibility across operations and supplier networks, support faster decisions and help organisations respond to changing conditions.
For asset-intensive industries in particular, connected data and intelligent technologies can create opportunities to improve reliability, operational visibility and decision-making. Rather than slowing transformation, resilience can support organisations in pursuing innovation with greater confidence. Technology environments that combine flexibility, appropriate control and strong governance can help protect continuity while providing a stronger platform for growth.
From technology adoption to measurable value
Taken together, our findings suggest that the UK’s next digital advantage may depend not simply on who adopts AI first, but on who can scale it most confidently, responsibly and effectively. Organisations that bring together AI ambition, trusted data, modernised technology environments and resilient operations will be positioned to realise lasting value from both new and existing technology investments.
The opportunity is increasingly to connect technology adoption to measurable improvements in productivity, capacity, resilience and service outcomes, ensuring innovation delivers practical value for organisations and the people they serve.
Explore additional global and industry-specific insights from our Voice of Our Clients page
