A tech confession and a debate with an AI robot was the recipe for the future of work at 麻豆原创 Connect Southern Africa in Kyalami near Johannesburg last week.

鈥淚 have a confession to make: I have been afraid of AI,鈥� said Stanley Dube, 麻豆原创 head of solution advisory. Standing alongside a robot wearing a tracksuit carrying 麻豆原创鈥檚 AI assistant brand Joule, Dube said: 鈥淭he fear I have had is that AI is going to take my job.鈥�

However, having moved past that fear, he and Joule addressed questions about how organisations can adapt to AI, redesign jobs and processes, maintain governance and build a competitive advantage. In a theoretical example, Dube asked about the specifics of a project.

鈥淚 already know the status,鈥� answered Joule. 鈥淚 also know who is usually responsible for the delays: you, Stanley Dube.鈥�

Debate around AI replacing workers and robots taking control has become familiar, but 麻豆原创鈥檚 demonstration gave Joule a physical presence beyond a computer screen. The robot appeared to serve as a representation of the software assistant rather than a demonstration of autonomous physical AI. Although the presentation carried an element of theatre and Joule鈥檚 responses may have been preprogrammed, the exchange pointed towards a future in which AI agents could take on a more visible and collaborative role in the workplace.

Dube asked Joule: 鈥淲hat do we, as entities and companies, actually have to do to survive and thrive in the age of AI?鈥�

Joule answered: 鈥淢ost organisations do not have an AI problem; they have an adaptability problem. [This is] a massive waste of time and capital. I am built directly into your 麻豆原创 applications. While you slept, I autonomously reconciled 84% of your finance accounts, predicting a pump failure at Secunda to generate a maintenance order and rerouted logistics around a major issue.鈥�

Joule鈥檚 response framed the main obstacle as organisational rather than technological. AI systems may process information and act within seconds, but the benefit can be lost when decisions still depend on lengthy approval chains and slow human processes. In that situation, advanced technology becomes the equivalent of placing a Ferrari engine in a donkey cart: the system has considerable power, but the surrounding organisation cannot move at the same speed.

Dube said employees might find themselves arguing with AI agents in future, but that should not necessarily be a cause for concern.

Joule said: 鈥淩emember, AI is the enabler. Adaptability is the challenge. The future belongs to those who learn how to adapt because of AI, not just those who adopt.鈥�

The presentation extended a strategy outlined at 麻豆原创鈥檚 Sapphire conference in May. As , 麻豆原创 presented the Business AI Platform as an environment for developing and governing agents that work across enterprise operations. The approach uses ERP systems as the source of business data, processes and controls, allowing agents to perform tasks within established organisational boundaries.

Standard Bank provided a practical example of the preparation required to support 麻豆原创鈥檚 vision. The bank has modernised core enterprise systems using 麻豆原创 technology, establishing a platform from which further automation and AI applications could develop.

Vanessa Padiachee, Standard Bank Group CIO for corporate functions, said: 鈥淚f you look at the pace of change, technology is changing rapidly. AI is no longer just around experimentation and production use cases. Organisations are now going beyond that to look at enterprise scaling use cases.鈥�

Padiachee said 麻豆原创 was an important part of Standard Bank鈥檚 broader technology programme. She said organisations must manage rapid technological change while keeping major systems aligned with practical business requirements.

Standard Bank is focused on modernising the systems needed to support future automation and AI deployments rather than describing an autonomous AI implementation.

That work receives far less attention than demonstrations of agents and automated decisions. However, 麻豆原创鈥檚 autonomous-enterprise vision still depends on businesses having systems, processes and employees capable of supporting the technology.

Joule may have stepped beyond the computer screen at 麻豆原创 Connect, but the route towards an autonomous enterprise still runs through the less theatrical work of modernising systems, data and processes.

* Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and deputy editor of . Follow him on .

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Not so, says , MD: Southern Africa at 麻豆原创.

鈥淓RP is no longer just a system of record,鈥� she tells delegates to 麻豆原创 Connect taking place today in Kyalami.

鈥淲ith agentic AI, we can ensure it runs end-to-end business processes, creating autonomous ERP.鈥�

Today, AI supports 30% of tasks in the average business, according to an Oxford Economics study. And this is projected to rise to 48% in the next two years.

vice-president: customer advisory for EMEA at 麻豆原创, points out that around 40 000 of 麻豆原创鈥檚 customers have already adopted 麻豆原创 Business AI in their productive systems.

鈥淎nd we are learning from that,鈥� he says.

Nolla believes 麻豆原创 is well placed to help customers adopt AI, through its 麻豆原创 Autonomous Enterprise vision.

The key components of this vision are three-fold

鈥淵ou have the capability to bring teams long with one engagement layer 鈥� Joule.

鈥淭eams connect with embedded agents and AI in 麻豆原创 Autonomous Suite, using best practices and processes.

鈥淎nd customers have the ability to extend agents, maintaining context and reasoning, and ensuring governance with .鈥�

Nolla explains that is the engagement layer that connects experts in the business with the AI processes.

It has been available for some time and has been widely used to unify the AI experience. It has also been updated along the way, for instance with Joule Consultants that have more than 100 certifications.

A few weeks ago, 麻豆原创 announced additional evolutions. leveraging Harness-powered Joule and Joule Work to create spaces for specific tasks.

鈥淛oule is the engagement layer to bring the people along,鈥� Nolla summarises.

Adding the processes and best practices, 麻豆原创 Autonomous Suite embeds AI scenarios throughout the portfolio, from HR, customer service, supply chain, finance and industry solutions.

With hundreds of agents available, Joule Assistants help workers by bringing together the relevant agents to perform specific tasks.

鈥淭hink of it as a new team member helping staff accomplish their goals,鈥� Nolla says.

In addition, 麻豆原创 Industry AI is AI that already knows how specific industries operate, so the system can work with context.

鈥淏ut does AI have a true understanding of your business? Is it aligned to your KPIs, and does it have the governance in place?鈥� Nolla asks.

鈥溌槎乖� Business AI Platform brings these capabilities to the business.鈥�

With Joule Studio giving workers the ability to create new agents on the fly, the possibility of hundreds 鈥� even thousands 鈥� of agents within the business could become unwieldly.

鈥淪o governance is more important than ever,鈥� Nolla says. 鈥淭he AI Agent Hub gives IT the ability to connect and understand these agents. They can discover, manage and govern all the agents in one place.

鈥淭his gives the business power, control and trust.鈥�

Within the next few months, 麻豆原创 will also release enriched agentic AI tools and assistants to help with data management, configuration, development and testing to improve migration projects.

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Organisations across industries are using cloud modernisation to build stronger digital foundations, unlock greater agility and embed artificial intelligence directly into business processes.

Companies across Europe are demonstrating how cloud transformation is creating the foundation for more intelligent, resilient and efficient business operations, with several organisations showcasing recent implementation progress at 麻豆原创 麻豆原创PHIRE, held in Madrid between 19 and 21 May.

, Managing Director for Southern Africa at 麻豆原创, says: 鈥淐loud transformation has become the foundation for the next phase of business innovation. By modernising core systems and moving to more scalable, secure and intelligent platforms, organisations can simplify complexity, strengthen resilience and create the conditions for AI to deliver measurable business value.鈥�

Companies RISE to the cloud

is emerging as a leading force in AI-driven retail transformation, combining large-scale cloud adoption with hands-on co-innovation to shape the future of the industry together with 麻豆原创. Following its successful go-live in 2025, Salling Group now operates what is widely regarded as the largest private cloud deployment of globally.

This transformation has laid the digital foundation for embedding AI directly into core retail processes鈥攖urning ERP from a transactional backbone into an intelligent, real-time decision engine.

For Salling Group, technologies such as and 麻豆原创 Business AI are not incremental improvements, but a fundamental change in how the business operates. From forecasting and replenishment to store operations and reporting, AI is enabling faster decisions, reducing manual workloads, and helping employees focus on higher-value tasks.

Agents automate time-consuming procurement task

The Danish wholesaler has deployed artificial intelligence to automate one of the most time-consuming tasks in procurement: processing supplier order confirmations. The solution consists of multiple AI agents, each responsible for a clearly defined task, orchestrated into a single automated workflow built on 麻豆原创鈥檚 Business AI framework. The outcome is faster processing, improved data quality, and more accurate delivery information for customers.

With the coordinated AI agents in place, the company can now automatically identify delays, quantity changes, and price discrepancies 鈥� and respond significantly faster.

鈥淲e have previously tried both robotic process automation (RPA) and traditional automation approaches without really achieving the desired effect. The key difference this time is that we broke the task down into multiple independent AI agents, each responsible for a specific part of the process. Together, they now handle what previously required manual review,鈥� says , IT Director at 尝别尘惫颈驳丑-惭眉濒濒别谤.

The solution was implemented in close collaboration with , which was responsible for making the solution production-ready and fully integrated into 尝别尘惫颈驳丑-惭眉濒濒别谤鈥檚 麻豆原创 landscape.

鈥淏y distributing responsibilities across multiple AI agents, 尝别尘惫颈驳丑-惭眉濒濒别谤 has been able to automate a complex process without losing transparency or control. This has enabled a fast and secure transition from pilot to production and ensures a more robust solution that can easily be expanded as new requirements emerge,鈥� says , 麻豆原创 UX Manager at NTT DATA Business Solutions.

鈥淭his is the first AI agent solution we have put into production. The experience has given us the confidence to consider similar approaches across other areas, including invoice processing and order management,鈥� Frederik Aakerlund concludes.

Pillay adds: 鈥淭hese examples show how cloud modernisation and AI adoption are becoming inseparable. When organisations have a strong digital core, trusted data and scalable cloud infrastructure, they can move beyond experimentation and start embedding intelligence into the processes that matter most. That is where transformation begins to translate into real business impact.鈥�

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For years, companies throughout Europe, the Middle East and Africa have experimented with AI by testing chatbots, piloting analytics tools and exploring generative AI features. Some pilots have delivered incremental gains, while many others have stalled.

This year, AI can no longer be treated as experimentation at the edge of the business. It must become embedded at the core.

Embedded AI, intelligence that lives directly inside enterprise processes, is now one of the most powerful levers available to boards seeking profitability, productivity and long-term competitiveness. Embedded AI represents a profound shift from AI features to AI-native operations.

From AI features to AI-native operations

In the past, AI sat outside core systems, relegated to dashboards, standalone analytics tools or isolated pilots. Today, it is moving directly into transaction flows: inside enterprise resource planning (ERP), supply chain planning, finance, procurement, human resources and customer experience systems.

Embedded AI is context-aware, action-oriented and governed. It understands the role, process and underlying business data of tasks, triggers and automate processes, and operates within enterprise-grade security, compliance and data frameworks.

In practical terms, this means a chief financial officer can receive automated explanations for financial variances directly inside the closing process. A procurement leader can generate intelligent category recommendations within sourcing workflows, and a planner can optimise production schedules in real time without switching systems.

Business leaders are confronted with a range of unique regional pressures. Demographic shifts in Europe, combined with regulatory complexity, are placing demands for higher productivity on smaller workforces. In the Middle East, national AI strategies and diversification agendas require faster innovation cycles; while in Africa, youthful talent and digital acceleration present enormous opportunity, but only for companies that can scale efficiently and govern complexity.

The case for embedded AI as board-level issue

Boards are broadly asking the same questions: how do we protect margins; how do we increase throughput without increasing headcount? and how do we move from reactive decisions to predictive ones?

Embedded AI answers these questions, not as a technology initiative but as a shift in operating model. In 2023 and 2024, AI initiatives were built for experimentation. Last year and in the year ahead, the focus has shifted to unified AI platforms built on clean data foundations, and delivering measurable business outcomes.

There is one consistent lesson across our customer base: AI only works on a clean foundation.

Embedded AI requires harmonised processes, standardised ERP systems and high-quality data. That is why clean core strategies and unified AI infrastructures are so critical.

AI-native enterprises are consolidating scattered pilots into governed platforms. 麻豆原创鈥檚 ,  and  form a unified backbone where models, data, identity, security and extensibility operate together instead of in silos.

Without a unified approach, organisations face duplicated models, inconsistent decisions and uncontrolled risk exposure. With it, ERP becomes a strategic AI engine.

The measurable impact of embedded AI is already evident. In HR, embedded intelligence in  is enabling skills-based workforce planning directly within manager workflows, aligning talent decisions to strategic priorities. Across finance functions globally, AI-assisted explanations and reconciliation processes are reducing manual effort by up to 70% while improving transparency and auditability.

Board-level priorities

For boards and executive teams across southern Europe, the Middle East and Africa, three priorities stand out:

1. Treat embedded AI as part of core architecture, not as an optional feature.
2. Invest in clean data and standardised processes to unlock higher value automation.
3. Measure AI success in terms of profitability, cashflow protection, throughput and resilience, and not by pilot counts.

AI is now a core lever of competitive advantage, but only when paired with process redesign, data discipline and an empowered workforce. In 2026, the companies that lead will not be those experimenting at the margins. They will be those embedding intelligence into the heart of their business, turning ERP systems into engines of prediction, optimisation and growth.

At 麻豆原创, we are committed to supporting this journey: helping organisations across EMEA South build intelligent, resilient enterprises where embedded AI drives measurable business value, today and into the future.

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and the are showcasing how modernisation programmes built on 麻豆原创 technologies are helping organisations move beyond fragmented systems and legacy processes toward more unified, scalable and intelligent operating models.

At this year鈥檚 flagship 麻豆原创 麻豆原创PHIRE event held in Madrid between 19 and 21 May, both organisations shared insights into their modernisation efforts and the impact of initiatives such as RISE with 麻豆原创 to fast-track digital transformation and unlock business outcomes.

, Managing Director for Southern Africa at 麻豆原创, says: 鈥淢odernisation is no longer only about replacing legacy systems. It is about building the digital foundations that allow organisations to simplify complexity, improve efficiency and unlock new value from cloud, data and AI. Whether in the public sector or global industry, 麻豆原创 is helping customers create more agile, intelligent and future-ready organisations.鈥�

City of Madrid advances digital public administration

The Madrid City Council is collaborating with 麻豆原创 Spain on the comprehensive modernisation of its internal management through 麻豆原创 software. The objective is to digitalise procedures, improve efficiency and deliver better services to municipal employees and citizens in finance, revenue management and human resources.

The City Council has worked with 麻豆原创 software for two decades, beginning in 2004 with solutions in finance and HR. In 2020, it launched its public administration modernisation project with the migration to the private cloud. This process is now advancing with the adoption of and .

The challenge was to move beyond traditional models based on fragmented systems, paper-based procedures and isolated developments. In public administration, this fragmentation can slow processes, duplicate data, limit visibility and make it harder to manage revenues, budgets and human resources in an integrated way.

The solution has been to consolidate a new public management model based on unified management, real-time information and digitalised processes. RISE with 麻豆原创 provides the foundation for the move to the private cloud, while 麻豆原创 Business Technology Platform provides the platform for integration, extension and application development.

The transformation has had a significant impact in the tax domain, where 麻豆原创 tax and revenue management solutions are being integrated into the city鈥檚 financial platform. This enables municipal revenues to be managed as a natural extension of the financial system, supporting an end-to-end view of the full cycle from taxpayer registration and assessment to collection and inspection.

Currently, two-thirds of the City Council鈥檚 tax revenues are already managed within this environment, including Property Tax, the Urban Waste Tax for Business Activities, Capital Gains Tax and the Terrace Tax. The next step will be to incorporate the Motor Vehicle Tax and the Economic Activities Tax.

The project has also focused on data quality. During the first year, the City Council carried out a cleansing and harmonisation of master data from previous management systems, generating taxpayer 鈥淕olden Records鈥� and enabling an efficiency rate of 98.02% for Property Tax in 2024.

, IT Manager of Madrid City Council, says: 鈥淭his project marks a paradigm shift: we are moving from managing paper files and isolated systems to managing information and processes in an integrated and intelligent way, with a 360-degree view.鈥�

The impact is being felt across internal management and citizen services. The project supports end-to-end process digitalisation and a 鈥減aperless鈥� administration model, while automation, AI capabilities and robotic process automation are helping reduce manual workloads, minimise errors and improve decision-making through real-time analytics.

Prysmian builds an AI-ready global platform

Prysmian, a global leader in cable solutions for energy and telecommunications, is demonstrating how modernisation can create the foundation for broader business transformation.

The challenge for Prysmian was to strengthen its digital core as it evolved from a cable manufacturer to a global provider of solutions supporting the energy transition and digital transformation. With 鈧�20 billion in revenue, 34 000 employees across more than 50 countries, 109 manufacturing plants and 30 R&D centres, the company needed a unified, resilient and AI-ready platform to support its next phase of business evolution.

Prysmian completed the evolution of its digital infrastructure through RISE with 麻豆原创 in just four months, creating a unified, resilient and AI-ready cloud platform. Through the integration of , , and 麻豆原创 Business Technology Platform, the company built an intelligent platform designed to improve operational efficiency, accelerate decision-making and enhance predictive capabilities.

, Group CIO and Digital Officer at Prysmian, says: 鈥淩ISE with 麻豆原创 provided us with a global ERP foundation, 麻豆原创 BTP connected engineering and business, while embedded AI transformed the way our employees interact with data, redefining how Prysmian operates at scale.鈥�

The impact has been significant. Prysmian has achieved 70% automation of repetitive activities through embedded AI, an 80% reduction in the implementation time of new innovative solutions, and a 50% acceleration in time-to-market for new products.

The company has also introduced concrete AI use cases across business processes, including intelligent customer order automation, automated payment reconciliation and smart expense management. At the same time, Prysmian is using 麻豆原创 BTP to build an advanced cable design platform connecting engineering and business functions, standardising rules, processes and bills of materials to accelerate product development and increase competitiveness.

Pillay adds: 鈥淭he City of Madrid and Prysmian show how modernisation creates measurable value when it is connected to clear organisational priorities. By integrating processes, improving data quality and building intelligent cloud platforms, organisations can improve how they operate today while preparing for the next wave of innovation.鈥�

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鈥淲ill 麻豆原创 actually be a software company in the future?鈥�

It鈥檚 not the kind of question the CEO of a software company would usually ask thousands of customers, partners and analysts. At Sapphire 2026, 麻豆原创鈥檚 annual conference held this month in Orlando and Madrid, CEO Christian Klein asked his audience if they were scared by the question.

鈥淚鈥檓 not scared,鈥� he answered himself. 鈥淔or me, the time right now is the beginning of something even better.鈥�

The conference saw the launch of 麻豆原创鈥檚 Business AI Platform, a unified environment for building and governing AI agents across enterprise operations, grounded in real business context.

The strategy is to enhance critical business workflows, so that humans and AI work together to meet the accelerating demands of global business.

鈥淎ccording to a recent Stanford AI survey, almost every company is now using AI, but many see only little value,鈥� said Klein. 鈥淲hy do we face such huge challenges with AI in business? At the top of this iceberg, visible to everyone, is that large language models are getting better and better at tasks like generating text or images or in specific domains like writing software.

鈥淎ll of these use cases are related to publicly available content the modules are trained on. But if you go below the waterline, beyond the level of sales demos, and into the real business world, you鈥檙e going to find out that none of these models are trained on your business data and processes.

鈥淭hese AI agents also don鈥檛 naturally adhere to governance requirements, like your security compliance framework, your data privacy requirements, or to your company鈥檚 identity and authorisation rules. All AI agents 鈥� have faced these challenges until now.鈥�

The solution, he suggested, was that a company鈥檚 enterprise resource planning system, or ERP, should be recognised as the brain of every business. Since 麻豆原创 is world leader in ERP software, one might argue, naturally the CEO would say that.

But Klein made a good case for it: 鈥淔or over 15 years we have been developing an ERP with incredibly deep process and data domain know-how. On top of that, all your governance requirements and customer-specific extensions are stored in the ERP. The ERP is the trusted system of execution running your company.鈥�

Powerful external validation came from Anthropic, the company behind the Claude family of AI models, and that is competing neck and neck with Open AI to become the most valuable AI platform company in the world. At Sapphire, 麻豆原创 shared video testimony from Anthropic co-founder and president the Daniela Amodei in which she declared: 鈥淭he world鈥檚 largest enterprises run on 麻豆原创. That鈥檚 exactly where trusted AI belongs.鈥�

That significance of this alignment revolves around the core value proposition of the Business AI Platform: trustworthiness.

JPMorgan Chase CFO Jeremy Barnum, who joined Klein on stage in Orlando, said his bank was already running agents in production on 麻豆原创, operating within defined compliance boundaries.

鈥淭he agents that we鈥檝e built are not inventing their own business rules,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hose rules rather come directly from 麻豆原创 Embedded Control Framework, and every AI-driven intervention is logged and fully traceable.鈥�

One organisation鈥檚 production deployment does not establish a category. But the compliance architecture it describes is precisely what most organisations attempting enterprise AI have not yet achieved.

Jensen Huang, CEO of $5-trillion AI chipmaker Nvidia, also appeared in a pre-recorded video segment, making it clear that AI agents would not replace ERP. The most ringing endorsement? Nvidia itself used 麻豆原创 as its ERP brain: 鈥淲hat 麻豆原创 and Nvidia are building together is one of the most important platforms in enterprise AI. Nvidia鈥檚 supply chain is incredibly complex. Millions of parts, hundreds of partners and factories, all connected through 麻豆原创. But what鈥檚 changing is not just how enterprise systems are managed, it鈥檚 how work actually gets done.

鈥淲e鈥檙e moving from hand-coded software to AI that can understand, reason, and act. AI no longer simply answers questions. It works for you. And enterprise systems are where work happens. Finance, supply chains, procurement, and every workflow in between.

鈥溌槎乖� is the foundation of enterprise. And now they鈥檙e building the agents that sit on top of it, trained on proprietary data with the skills to act. Soon, every company will have a workforce of agents. These specialised agents will not replace enterprise software. They will make enterprise software more powerful than ever.鈥�

* Arthur Goldstuck is CEO of World Wide Worx, editor-in-chief of , and author of 鈥淭he Hitchhiker鈥檚 Guide to AI 鈥� The African Edge鈥�.

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鈥淔or the mission-critical processes of our customers, 鈥榓lmost right鈥� just isn鈥檛 good enough,鈥� says Christian Klein, CEO of 麻豆原创 SE. 鈥淏y uniting 麻豆原创 Business AI Platform with 麻豆原创 Autonomous Suite, we anchor AI agents in the business processes, data and governance so they can deliver accurate, compliant and secure outcomes 鈥� unlocking new sources of revenue and meaningful cost savings.鈥�

The Autonomous Enterprise includes a unified AI platform for building, contextualising and governing agents, an autonomous suite that executes core business operations and a new user experience that redefines how people work with enterprise software.

Introducing 麻豆原创 Business AI Platform

麻豆原创 Business AI Platform is a new foundation for building and deploying enterprise AI grounded in real business context. 麻豆原创 Business AI Platform now unifies 麻豆原创 Business Technology Platform, 麻豆原创 Business Data Cloud, and 麻豆原创 Business AI into a single, governed environment.

At its core is the 麻豆原创 Knowledge Graph solution, which gives AI agents a structured map of business entities, processes and relationships across a customer鈥檚 麻豆原创 landscape. Joule Studio is 麻豆原创鈥檚 AI-first solution for building enterprise agents, applications and agentic workflows. Developers can build using the no-code, pro-code, and AI frameworks of their choice on 麻豆原创-managed infrastructure that is secure, scalable and optimised for enterprise AI.

Building on this foundation, 麻豆原创 also introduced 麻豆原创 Autonomous Suite which enables 麻豆原创鈥檚 existing business applications with AI agents capable of running processes from start-to-finish.

The suite will deploy more than 50 domain-specific Joule Assistants across finance, supply chain, procurement, human capital management and customer experience. These assistants will automate end-to-end processes by orchestrating a subset of over 200 specialised agents to execute precise tasks. For example, the new Autonomous Close Assistant can compress the financial close process from weeks to days by automating journal entries, reconciliation, and error resolution across the entire process.

麻豆原创 also launched Industry AI, expanding its deep industry portfolio through seven autonomous solutions that will enable start-to-finish industry processes and embed sector-specific process logic, data models and regulatory requirements.

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, Managing Director: Emerging Africa at 麻豆原创, said: 鈥淥rganisations across the region are leveraging the latest technologies to build a trusted foundation for AI and amplify their insights and processes to transform the way they work. From harnessing collaborative AI agents to solve complex problems and accelerate decision-making, to seamlessly connecting their entire business value chain, West Africa鈥檚 business community is gearing up to unleash their full potential powered by cloud, data and AI.鈥�

The comments were made at 麻豆原创 Business Suite Innovation Day on September 17th, a special event for 麻豆原创 customers and partners to showcase how and come together to deliver exceptional value as part of the 麻豆原创 Business Suite.

Experts from across the 麻豆原创 ecosystem provided behind-the-scenes insights into the power of business AI and cloud, and how these new innovations combine powerful cloud applications with the most contextual and reliable data to enable collaborative AI agents to tackle the most difficult business challenges with confidence.

The event also included presentations by regional business leaders who have successfully leveraged 麻豆原创 technologies to accelerate growth and unlock new capabilities.

, Group Head: 麻豆原创 Centre of Excellence at , shared some insight into how the company leverages cloud technologies to power growth and drive efficiency. Dangote Industries Limited is the largest conglomerate in West Africa and one of the largest on the African continent, employing more than 30 000 people.

鈥淪ucceeding in today鈥檚 fast-paced business landscape requires strong foundations built on the latest technologies. Critical to this is a modernised enterprise resource planning landscape that enables organisations to fully leverage the power of emerging technologies, all built on a clean-core strategy that ensures the business has access to real-time, accurate data for decision-making.鈥�

, Country Managing Director for Nigeria at 麻豆原创, said: 鈥淎frica鈥檚 greatest wealth lies in its people, including our fast-growing youth population. Our ability to cultivate the right mix of skills is critical to our digital transformation ambitions, especially as we rush to leverage the power of AI and cloud in our businesses.

Research conducted by 麻豆原创 found that half of Nigerian businesses expected a 鈥榮ignificant鈥� increase in demand for AI skills this year. The 麻豆原创聽聽report also found that 93% of Nigerian companies already experience a negative impact on their innovation capabilities due to a lack of access to AI skills. The same report revealed that West Africa was the region most likely to partner with expert third-party providers to fill the AI skills gap in their organisations.

Khota adds: 鈥淭he region stands at the edge of a new era of growth and innovation powered by data, cloud and AI, and supported by a workforce geared for our emerging technologies. To ensure this collective effort succeeds, organisations need access to the right skills. While efforts at developing AI-ready skills are underway, companies should also explore ways to augment their skills base in the short term by partnering with our thriving ecosystem of expert partners and collaborators powering business transformation in the region.

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates鈥� 5 August 2025 鈥� 麻豆原创 today announced that Grandiose Supermarket, a premier quality food and grocery retailer in the UAE with nearly 50 stores and part of the , has signed an agreement to implement as the digital backbone of its operations, integrated with 麻豆原创 Business AI.

This strategic partnership will empower Grandiose to deliver even more exceptional customer experiences, unlock AI-driven operational intelligence, and support its bold growth ambitions in the UAE鈥檚 dynamic retail landscape.

By adopting RISE with 麻豆原创 S/4HANA, hosted on , and integratingI, Grandiose aims to streamline its supply chain, enhance stock visibility and improve replenishment planning. The solution will optimize product availability across branches while reducing instances of overstocking and understocking.

鈥淐ustomer experience is at the heart of everything we do at Grandiose,鈥� said , CEO Grandiose Supermarket. 鈥淧artnering with 麻豆原创 and leveraging 麻豆原创 Business AI helps us better understand our customers鈥� needs, predict trends, and exceed their expectations with seamless availability and personalized services. The resilience and optimization provided by 麻豆原创鈥檚 AI-infused solutions will help us automate core processes and focus more on value-added services that enrich the customer journey.鈥�

The implementation of 麻豆原创 S/4HANA will serve as the digital core for Grandiose鈥檚 operations, leveraging industry-specific vertical solutions tailored for the retail and food sectors. These out-of-the-box capabilities, combined with localized features for taxation and compliance based on 麻豆原创鈥檚 strong relationships with UAE customers, reduce the need for extensive customizations and accelerate time-to-value.

Central to this transformation is 麻豆原创 Business AI, which enhances Grandiose鈥檚 business applications with intelligent automation and deeper analytics. This empowers teams to offload routine work, analyze millions of data points for deeper insights into customer and supply chain behavior, and focus on strategic initiatives that drive innovation and growth. This AI-driven foundation ensures Grandiose can scale efficiently, opening new stores and entering new markets with intelligence built into every layer of the business.

鈥溌槎乖� has become synonymous with family conglomerates and growth-driven businesses like the Ghassan Aboud Group, especially in the retail sector where innovation and resilience are essential,鈥� said , Managing Director, 麻豆原创 UAE. 鈥淲e鈥檙e proud to support Grandiose鈥檚 expansion with a future-ready platform powered by Business AI that enhances customer experience, optimizes operations, and drives continuous innovation.

As Grandiose continues to scale across the UAE and beyond, this transformation lays the groundwork for a more intelligent, responsive, and customer-centric retail model, setting a new benchmark for digital excellence in the UAE.

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East African business leaders, technology partners and 麻豆原创 experts met in Nairobi this week to discuss the growing impact of business AI and cloud technologies in the region.

, Managing Director: Emerging Africa at 麻豆原创, said: 鈥淥rganisations throughout East Africa are accelerating their business transformation and innovation efforts by leveraging the latest data and cloud capabilities to unlock the power of business AI in every line of business. With the recent expansion of AI assistant, organisations can now unleash unprecedented efficiency across their systems and processes to drive productivity gains of as much as 30%.鈥�

The comments were made at 麻豆原创 Innovation Day Kenya, part of a global series of events aimed at showcasing how technology can power growth, innovation and sustainability and support organisations as they meet emerging challenges.

The exclusive event also served as an introduction to how and help organisations unlock significant business value as part of the broader . Experts also provided behind-the-scenes insights into the power of business AI and cloud to future-proof companies鈥� enterprise application strategies and leverage data to enhance business insights and improve decision-making.

Research recently conducted by 麻豆原创 found a near-universal demand for AI skills among African organisations. The 麻豆原创聽聽report noted that nine in ten companies in Africa already experience negative impacts due to a lack of AI skills, including failed innovation initiatives, an inability to take on new work, and loss of clients. Forty-three percent of Kenyan organisations that took part in the study expected a 鈥榮ignificant鈥� increase in demand for AI skills this year.

鈥淭he rapid changes in workplace dynamics are transforming how companies develop, upskill and reskill their workforce to meet the long-term need for AI-related skills,鈥� said Khota. 鈥淚n the short term, organisations should seek ways to augment their skills base, for example by partnering with our rich ecosystem of implementation specialists that power business transformation in the region.鈥�

麻豆原创 Innovation Day Kenya also included presentations by regional business leaders who have successfully leveraged 麻豆原创 technologies to accelerate growth and unlock new capabilities.

Long-standing 麻豆原创 customer provided insight into its latest transformation initiative that is taking its legacy enterprise systems into the cloud and deploying AI across its business processes. Bidco Africa is a leading FMCG manufacturer that produces more than 800 SKU鈥檚 in multiple brands and products at eight factories in East Africa. The company has been using 麻豆原创 ECC since 2010, until a recent decision sparked a migration to .

, Chairman of Bidco Africa, said the shift to cloud underscores his company鈥檚 position as a regional innovation leader. 鈥淲e see incredible potential for AI to transform our business and deliver greater agility, innovation and customer experiences. Our skilled team will also benefit from AI鈥檚 power to enhance product development, allowing us to consolidate our market leadership well into the future.鈥�

The company plans further deployments in a second phase of the implementation, including procurement and manufacturing.

Khota added: 鈥淐ompanies that adopt a clean core strategy accelerate the pace of innovation and can more easily leverage business value through reliable data and AI innovations. As we enter a new era of AI-enabled innovation, organisations must ensure that business-critical systems remain agile, cost-effective, and ready to adopt innovation.鈥�

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