Cape Town – Lenovo’s 2025 CIO Playbook, It’s Time for AI-nomics, has revealed a significant increase in artificial intelligence (AI) investments, underscoring its growing influence on global enterprises.
Lenovo is a Chinese global technology company known for designing, manufacturing, and selling a wide range of products, including personal computers, smartphones, servers, and storage devices.
In collaboration with IDC, the report surveyed over 620 IT and business leaders across the Central and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) region, showing a sharp rise in AI spending and a clear move toward the widespread adoption of Generative AI (GenAI).
The study found that AI spending is expected to more than double in 2025, with nearly 20% of IT budgets earmarked for AI initiatives.
“The research underscores that AI investment is set to more than double in 2025, accounting for nearly 20% of total IT budgets. Among organisations that have deployed AI projects in the past year, 94% reported that their implementations at least met expectations, with nearly a third exceeding them. However, maintaining this growth trajectory remains a significant concern, as scaling AI and addressing data quality issues are the top challenges where projects have fallen short,” Lenovo said.
A significant finding from the report is the growing adoption of Generative AI (GenAI). In 2024, only 12% of organisations used GenAI, but that number is expected to jump to 44% in the next year.
However, nearly a quarter of enterprises still lack comprehensive AI Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) policies, which could impede long-term AI success.
Lenovo’s 2025 strategy, highlighted in the report, emphasises its Hybrid AI Advantage framework. This approach integrates cutting-edge devices, high-performance infrastructure, and AI-driven services, supported by strategic partnerships with tech giants like NVIDIA, Microsoft, Intel, and Qualcomm. Lenovo’s goal is to accelerate AI adoption by offering tools such as the AI Fast Start solution, which delivers production-ready AI models in under nine weeks.
The company’s AI Innovators Program (LAII), launched in 2022, continues to expand with more than 45 partners and over 100 AI solutions, spanning industries from computer vision to predictive analytics. Lenovo has invested heavily in AI development, training over 12,000 engineers and operating four global AI innovation centers.
Lenovo’s report stresses the importance of scaling AI effectively while addressing challenges such as data sovereignty, seamless integration with existing systems, and workforce training. As AI is set to become a key productivity multiplier, businesses must focus on building strong AI strategies and governance frameworks to maximise its potential and stay competitive in the evolving digital landscape.
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
