What matters is usability

THE ENTERPRISE AI space in 2026 will be defined by adoption that ensures tangible ROI for firms.

- The writer is vice-president of AI, Snowflake

Data will become the most powerful competitive moat. I believe the following trends will shape the AI industry.Technical experts: Enterprises are struggling to keep up with the pace of AI innovation, and they need more than just tools and instructions to successfully adopt it across their organisations - they need deeply embedded partners. By 2026, the AI vendors who will win the largest, most strategic accounts will be those with elite “forward deployed engineering’teams. These specialists act as translators, working side-by-side with customers to de-risk AI adoption and build tangible, production-grade AI solutions. This high-touch, deeply integrated model will become the key competitive moat, separating the AI platform winners from the rest of the pack.