IT professionals have identified their top five technology priorities for 2026, based on feedback from 284 enterprises. These insights reflect a combination of both expected challenges and more nuanced issues that highlight the complexities of contemporary IT environments.
1. AI Optimization and Uncertainty
The leading priority, cited by 211 enterprises, revolves around optimizing AI project value. Organizations aim to deploy the necessary hardware, software, data, and networking tools, despite significant uncertainty about which tools will be most effective. Enterprises focus on the agent form of AI, distinguishing between three models: interactive, workflow, and embedded agents. They aim to enhance the integration of insights from diverse data sources, yet they acknowledge the challenge of predicting the resource demands of interactive AI agents.
2. Cloud Backups
Cloud resilience is the second priority, with 173 enterprises stressing the need for backup strategies in case of cloud outages. Given that most cloud disruptions resolve quickly, organizations suggest a focused approach to determining what applications need backup and evaluating whether multi-cloud strategies or additional data center capacity are more effective.
3. Infrastructure Simplification
Managing technical complexity is the third priority, noted by 139 enterprises. The challenge lies in navigating numerous technologies and vendors. Many plan to implement a long-term simplification strategy to enhance operational efficiency, pointing to a trend where reducing the number of vendors may provide more benefits than multi-vendor strategies.
4. Governance Revamp
With 124 enterprises prioritizing governance, there’s a clear recognition of the need to strengthen governance frameworks. This need arises from the complexity added by AI, cloud models, and varying regulations across jurisdictions. The call for enhanced governance reflects a shift in focus, with 47% of enterprises now recognizing the necessity of “government affairs” input, a sharp increase from 12% in 2020.
5. Cost Management
Finally, 108 enterprises emphasized cost management, with 226 feeling increased budget pressure for 2026. Notably, focus has shifted from merely addressing capital costs to evaluating total cost of ownership (TCO). Understanding TCO in the context of optimizing AI, cloud resilience, and governance poses challenges, especially in balancing ongoing operations with formal project assessments.
In summary, as enterprises look ahead to 2026, they are strategically prioritizing a blend of AI optimization, cloud resilience, infrastructure simplicity, governance enhancement, and cost management, all critical for navigating the evolving technology landscape.
