UK execs view AI investment as lagging despite GBP £1B plan

A new report from NetApp highlights the competitive landscape of global artificial intelligence (AI) leadership, revealing differing views among executives about which regions are leading the way.

The report, based on a survey of 800 IT leaders and chief executives from the United Kingdom, United States, China, and India, shows that British business leaders are investing heavily in AI but still see their country as trailing behind the world's foremost AI players.

Perception gap

According to the findings, only 19% of respondents view the UK as a leader in AI, despite government claims of leadership and recent investment, including a GBP £1 billion pledge to boost AI infrastructure. Notably, nearly a third (27%) of British respondents acknowledged that the UK is struggling to keep pace with countries leading AI innovation.

A substantial portion of UK leaders—32%—feel additional pressure to compete in AI due to the strong positions held by China and the US. These two countries were repeatedly cited as setting the pace for global AI development.

This sense of lag is echoed globally, with 78% of all executives surveyed admitting that they feel behind in their AI transformation efforts, even though 81% report their organisations are piloting or scaling AI initiatives.

AI ambitions versus IT realities

The report uncovers a gap between organisational ambitions regarding AI and the practical realities of their IT capabilities. While the vast majority of organisations are pursuing AI growth, only 88% consider themselves ready to handle the transformation required for AI-driven business success.

Gabie Boko, Chief Marketing Officer at NetApp, set the stakes for nations and companies investing in AI infrastructure. She said:

"In the 'Space Race' of the 1960's, world powers rushed to accelerate scientific innovation for the sake of national pride. The outcomes of the 'AI Space Race' will shape the world for decades to come. The companies and regions that can get their data ready for AI will be able to generate differentiating business insights and unlock operational efficiencies that launch them ahead of their rivals. Intelligent, scalable, secure data infrastructure is a decisive factor as the global competition drives businesses to solidify their AI ambitions and understand how they translate into a true, lasting advantage."

The report finds divergent priorities impact the pace and depth of AI adoption. While organisations in China place greater emphasis on rapid scalability—35% rank this as a top focus—executives in the UK, US, and India are concentrating their efforts on integrating AI with existing systems to support long-term sustainability and business value.

Internal challenges and data strategy

Internal alignment remains a challenge in some regions. In China, for example, 92% of CEOs report active AI projects compared to 74% of IT leaders, suggesting a disconnect that could undermine long-term progress. By comparison, the US sees closer alignment between leaders on both strategy and execution, with 61% of CEOs and IT leaders designating their organisations as AI-ready.

Concerns about underlying data quality and cloud strategy are widespread. Seventy-nine percent of global respondents cited worries about the risks associated with poor data governance—including the potential for biases, security breaches, and malfunctioning AI models. These fears point to the necessity of robust data management practices as AI initiatives scale.

Russell Fishman, Senior Director of Solutions Product Management at NetApp, emphasised the crucial role of infrastructure:

"One of the most significant success factors in the AI Space Race will be data infrastructure and data management, supported by cloud solutions that are agile, secure and scalable. Winning organizations will be those that recognize that they require an intelligent data infrastructure in place to ensure unfettered AI innovation. This is critical no matter the company size, industry or geography. As organizations around the world embrace AI at scale, NetApp is there to help them extract maximum value from their data by creating an AI ready data infrastructure that unifies, manages and harnesses their data for optimal AI outcomes."

The data suggests that, while the competitive field is open, organisations must address issues of strategy alignment and data integrity to keep pace.

Preparedness and future outlook

The majority of respondents expect the global competition to intensify, with a strong consensus that AI is now essential for business and national development. The US is seen by 43% as best placed to lead AI innovation long-term, but each of the surveyed countries expressed confidence in their ability to remain competitive.

Executives view robust, adaptable data infrastructure as critical to successful AI adoption. The report concludes that those organisations able to move rapidly and adopt secure, intelligent infrastructure will be better positioned to adapt to evolving business needs and stay ahead as AI technologies mature.