European tech firms gain as AI moves into deployment

Europe’s established technology groups are emerging as beneficiaries of enterprise AI adoption as companies shift from experiments to deployment. SAP, Capgemini, Sopra Steria and OVHcloud have reported stronger demand, faster growth or improved outlooks as large organisations work to embed AI into existing software, data systems and business processes.

The main challenge is increasingly less about choosing AI models and more about making them usable across complex corporate environments. Large organisations are expected to rely on multiple models for different tasks, while ensuring systems respect permissions, preserve audit trails and fit into workflows already used by employees. Boston Consulting Group said deployment is moving faster than companies can manage it, with more than 70% of investors concerned about whether organisations have the technical and operational capabilities to succeed with AI.

SAP’s cloud backlog rose 26% at constant currencies to €22.9 billion, while Capgemini bookings climbed 9.2% and Sopra Steria upgraded its outlook after organic growth reached 5.3%. Demand is also rising for European-controlled infrastructure, with Airbus planning around 70 critical applications on Scaleway by the end of 2028 and OVHcloud reporting public-cloud revenue growth of 20.2% in its third quarter.