Revolut Business Report: European companies increase spending on AI for better recruiting and faster time to market

Focus of AI investments in Europe

The first Revolut Business report to focus on business growth revealed significant regional differences. Leaders in France, Poland and Spain are expected to increase AI investments in 2026 (30%, 21%, 21%). In contrast, IT modernization, automation, and cloud migration are top priorities for companies in Germany (23%), Italy (31%), Spain (25%), the Netherlands (22%), Ireland (20%), and Romania (19%). UK companies showed the least interest in AI (8%), focusing more on talent retention, training, and leadership development (17%).

Generational differences in AI priorities

Younger leaders are the most AI-oriented. AI is the number one priority for 18-24 year olds (23%) and 25-34 year olds (25%), compared to 15% of those over 55, 12% of those 45-54, and 17% of those 35-44.

Strategic investment priorities beyond AI

Across Europe, companies are increasing spending on research and development (14%) and sales and marketing (12%), while talent retention and development are also important (11%). Investment in new offices remains low (8%), although higher in the UK (16%), where physical expansion is still more important. Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) are a lower priority (7%).
How AI is transforming business performance

Leaders say AI will improve recruitment and team structure (22%), speed new product time to market (20%), and help them enter new markets (20%). It will also play a role in cost reduction (15%). Only 1% said their company is not experimenting with AI at all, while 22% said it was too early to talk about strategic impacts.

Increasing competitive pressure in the AI ​​era

European companies fear that their competitors will use AI to develop better, more personalized products (28%) and gain an advantage in data analysis and forecasting (25%). Concerns vary by country: in the UK, Ireland, France, the Netherlands and Italy, they are more concerned about developing better products, while in Germany, Poland, Romania and Spain, data analysis is the main fear. Data analysis is a concern for CEOs, while better products are for CFOs and COOs. A further 23% fear that their competitors will react faster to external changes.

Data, strategy and talent: key to scaling AI

Investment alone is not enough. European leaders say the main obstacle to scaling AI is data quality (22%), followed by executive support and a clear business integration strategy (21%), and access to highly skilled professionals (20%). There are differences across countries: data quality is the biggest challenge in the UK and Ireland (27%), management alignment in Romania (31%), and talent shortage in France (26%). While IT infrastructure is at the bottom of the list at the European level (17%), it is the top challenge in Italy (25%).

Develop or buy? The future of AI implementation

The strategic question is whether companies should build their own AI solutions or buy from external providers. A slight majority in Europe prefers in-house development (31%) over off-the-shelf solutions (27%). However, most companies (42%) use a hybrid model: they purchase AI solutions and then customize them in-house. Romanian companies are most likely to develop entirely in-house (39%), while Spanish companies are most likely to buy ready-made solutions (32%).