SAP Connect UAE Highlights Core Systems Driving Enterprise AI
SAP yesterday highlighted how organizations are embedding artificial intelligence into the systems that run their core operations at its annual flagship SAP Connect UAE event, held in Dubai this week as businesses across the UAE continue to accelerate growth and innovation agendas. Through new research findings, customer examples, and discussions across keynote sessions and panels, the technology company demonstrated that organizations are increasingly relying on AI-enabled ERP platforms to support large-scale adoption, helping them strengthen resilience, future-proof operations, and respond more effectively to rapidly changing market conditions.
According to SAP-commissioned YouGov research of chief IT decision-makers in the UAE, enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are playing a central role in this shift. More than half of respondents (53%) said their ERP system already serves as the primary platform enabling AI-driven processes and decisions across the business, while a further 32% said it supports AI across several core functions.
Held at Dubai Exhibition Centre in Expo City Dubai, the SAP event brought together business leaders to examine how AI is being integrated into finance, supply chain, human resources, and customer-facing functions, enabling more connected and data-driven decision-making across the enterprise.
Marwan Zeineddine, Managing Director, SAP UAE, said, “As organizations scale their use of AI, the focus is increasingly on how intelligence is embedded directly into core business systems. With the rise of agentic AI, businesses are beginning to move toward what SAP calls ‘Autonomous Enterprise’, where AI can support the more autonomous execution of tasks and processes while keeping people firmly in controlBy bringing together applications, data, and AI within a unified environment, organizations can improve decision-making, strengthen operational consistency, and respond more effectively to change.”
The research also pointed to strong confidence in existing enterprise systems. Half of respondents said they are very confident their ERP and enterprise platforms can support more advanced AI and automation over the next two years, while a further 40% said they are somewhat confident. This indicates that organizations are building on established technology foundations as they expand their AI capabilities.
Respondents identified operational efficiency and resilience (45%), faster and higher-quality decision-making (44%), and improved employee productivity (41%) as the areas where more advanced, AI-enabled enterprise systems are expected to deliver the greatest value.
These findings reflect a broader shift toward more integrated and intelligent operations, where AI is embedded within everyday business processes rather than deployed as a standalone capability.
