In a year defined by sovereign AI and data, one truth has become unavoidable: people will matter more than ever. Even the most ambitious AI strategies falter if companies don’t invest in their people.
More than 95% of companies worldwide now say they want to operate as their own AI and data platforms within the next 850 working days. It’s a stunning recognition from C-level executives from 13 countries that collectively represent $48 trillion in GDP – and a signal of how quickly the world is changing. IDC estimates that this transition could generate $17 trillion in GDP growth, effectively creating the world’s third-largest economy when viewed as a country.
Yet despite these enormous ambitions, only 13% of the more than 134,000 large companies are doing it right.
These early leaders made AI and data sovereignty a mission-critical priority. Your infrastructure enables secure access to information – anywhere, at any time and in any form. The results speak for themselves: they see a five times higher ROI than the others, with twice as many GenAI and agent systems being used in mainstream production. They also have 250% more confidence in their ability to achieve long-term success.
Companies like Abbott, AIA Singapore, Aviva India, Boston Scientific, Danske Bank, ENOC, JP Morgan Chase, Mastercard, Singtel, Wells Fargo, Toyota and others are already proving what scaled success looks like.
But this transformation is not a push-button upgrade. Digital transformation took almost a decade. The AI and data revolution could reach its peak in just three to four years and its impact could far exceed anything seen before.
Therefore, the crucial question of the next era is not purely technological. Sovereign AI will rise or fall depending on human readiness. Companies that fail to retrain, align and integrate their workforce into this transformation will find their ambitions limited before they can ever scale.
There are three main reasons for this.
The intelligent systems economy will require hundreds of millions of skilled people
This new AI-driven economy brings greater complexity than the cloud migration wave. According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2025 report, AI is expected to displace 92 million jobs but also create 170 million new ones – a net gain of 78 million. In some countries there is a risk that up to 70% of these new positions will remain unfilled due to skills shortages.
“We cannot realize the potential of this new economy with intelligent systems if we do not invest significant time and energy in retraining and empowering employees in new ways,” says Einav Lavi, CHRO at EDB. “The demand for skilled workers will far exceed supply, underscoring how important people are to this revolution.”
Enterprise-wide agent success requires everyone – not just specialists
The top 13% of companies consider AI and data sovereignty a company-wide standard. Their twice the density of AI initiatives and five times the ROI come from building a confident foundation that reaches everyone from HR and frontline employees to product design, engineering and finance.
They rolled out GenAI and agent systems in a coordinated, enterprise-wide sequence that embedded AI into the company’s DNA. Skill levels varied, but large-scale retraining led to large-scale change.
As companies evolve into AI “factories,” every employee becomes part of the production line, sharing common standards, practices, and a unified vision.
The world of work of the future will require continuous reinvention
For most of the last century, people held 1.5 jobs with 5-10 employers. This era is coming to an end. By 2050, 60-80% of today’s jobs will be automated, and individuals could hold 20-30 roles across a dozen companies.
“In this environment, continuous reskilling becomes one of the most valuable currencies for success,” notes Lavi. “The companies that are successful will invest as much in their people as they do in their AI.”
AI itself will accelerate this reinvention – by uncovering internal opportunities more quickly, assigning people to roles or taking on challenging tasks, and creating personalized development paths. Growth is increasingly driven by skills and contributions, not proximity or bias.
For HR departments and managers, AI-powered “human co-pilots” will reshape workforce planning by detecting early signs of burnout, workload imbalance, mood swings and retention risks – complementing, not replacing, human judgment.
The goal is not to automate humanity, but to advance what makes us human – the freedom of people to focus on creativity, judgment, empathy and innovation, the very things that machines cannot reproduce.
Daily Sparkz works with external contributors. All contributor content is reviewed by the Daily Sparkz editorial team.
