AI Agent Adoption Surges But Many Companies Lack Readiness

By Farah Ayadi, Staff Product Manager at Feedly

Image credit: Getty

The enterprise rush to deploy AI agents is accelerating, but many companies are unprepared for the complexities involved. According to KPMG's recent pulse survey, enterprise usage of AI agents tripled in a single quarter, with daily use jumping from 22% to 58%. However, the gap between hype and execution is widening, leaving leaders exposed.

Exploding Adoption, Rising Expectations

AI agent pilots surged to 65% between Q4 2024 and Q1 2025, with one-third of enterprises now using agents in full production. Technology firms lead the charge, with 77% of developers in some sectors using coding assistants daily. Yet, many deployments are driven by FOMO rather than strategy, creating significant risks.

Where AI Agents Deliver Results

In narrow, well-defined domains, AI agents are proving their value:

• Customer Support: Top agents handle 85% of inquiries with 90% accuracy, reducing costs and wait times.
• Software Development: Developers save hours by leveraging AI for code assistance, with some tasks completed with 80-100% AI input.
• Research and Analysis: AI agents cut research time from a full day to just 2-3 hours by automating competitor analysis and document review.

Challenges in Deployment

Despite the potential, many deployments struggle. For example, Salesforce's Agentforce has 5,000 signed deals, but 40% of customers remain on free trials, often due to organizational unpreparedness. Cultural barriers and unrealistic expectations—such as demanding 99% accuracy—hinder adoption.

Keys to Success

Leading organizations follow these best practices:

• Start with data readiness before selecting tools.
• Pilot multiple use cases in parallel.