Data management leader Denodo has released new research showing that 51% of UK organisations intend to increase their use of AI-based solutions for data management. This data is part of the 2023 Denodo Data Gap Report, which explores data management preferences and challenges based on input from professionals in 500 large companies across the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

Key highlights from the report indicate consensus among 71% of large companies across Europe that data only becomes important when all staff can easily access it. There is also a demand for improvement in data and analytics platforms' efficiency, with 68% of organisations suggesting there is room for enhancement. Additionally, 59% are planning to amplify their use of AI-based solutions. Challenges identified include legacy IT infrastructure, particularly within UK firms.

The report reaffirms the importance of data democratisation in business decisions, with 72% of those surveyed suggesting that an effective data platform includes a catalogue or reference guide, making it easier to understand the available data. Data governance also appears to play an integral role within companies, with UK companies highlighting the main advantages as being able to comply with current security and privacy regulations (54%), integrating information from multiple sources in a more agile way (44%) and improving consistency and cooperation across multiple teams (41%).

Charles Southwood, Regional Vice President, Northern Europe at Denodo, comments on the company’s mission, stating 'it is no longer sustainable to waste time trying to discover where data is located, what it represents and how it can be accessed.' He adds that companies need to adopt modern methods of managing data that display agility, clarity, simplicity, and efficiency and where consumer needs can occupy a central place in development.

The way to innovation appears to be paved with new technologies such as Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, with over a quarter (79%) of surveyed companies in the UK already using these solutions to support Data Management. 43% of these are planning to increase the use of these technologies, and 16% are planning to implement them within the next six months. A similar trend is noted in the rest of Europe, where 38% of large companies are already relying on AI and Machine Learning, planning to use them even more, and 13% who do not currently use these technologies are planning to incorporate them in the near future.

Looking at data storage, survey results show that during migrations, 35% of UK companies use a hybrid environment to store data, 30% use a private cloud, 19% use a multi-cloud environment, 20% use public cloud environments and nearly a quarter (24%) store the data in their own facilities. Varying levels of concern exist in different countries when it comes to replicating existing data silos in a cloud environment; French companies stand out as the most apprehensive (78%). German (66%), the UK (60%) and Spain (56%) followed closely, whereas Italian organisations appear to be the least concerned (45%).