Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2026. Read them in this 18th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.
By Deepak Singh, Chief Innovation Officer of Adeptia
As enterprises look toward 2026, AI is moving from experimentation to operational reality. The focus is no longer on adopting AI tools, but on building the integration, data, and automation foundations that allow AI to deliver sustained business value at scale.
In these predictions, four shifts will define the next phase of enterprise transformation. First, AI agents will emerge as a new class of enterprise “user,” operating autonomously on behalf of employees, customers, and partners. Second, enterprises will recognize that AI’s greatest constraint is not the model, but the quality of incoming data. First-Mile Data-the raw, inconsistent information entering from external and legacy sources-will become a strategic focus as organizations work to normalize and enrich data before it reaches AI workflows.
Third, modernization strategies will shift away from costly system replacements toward AI-ready integration layers that unlock value from existing platforms. Finally, industry-specific AI and vertical SaaS solutions will outpace horizontal tools by delivering faster, more relevant automation built on domain expertise.
Together, these trends signal a future in which AI success depends on an integration-first architecture and data readiness-not just intelligence alone.
AI Agents Become the New Enterprise “User” and They’ll Transform How Companies Automate
Enterprise software won’t just serve humans, it will also support a new class of users: AI agents acting on behalf of teams, partners, and customers. These agents will configure, trigger, and monitor automations with minimal human involvement, shifting organizations toward a true “set it and forget it” model. As companies deploy their own agents to boost productivity and customer experience, platforms like Adeptia will become the behind-the-scenes infrastructure these digital workers rely on to execute data tasks instantly and accurately.
First-Mile Data Becomes AI’s New Power Source in 2026
Enterprises will realize that AI’s real leverage point isn’t the model-it’s the First-Mile Data flowing into it: the messy, inconsistent information arriving from customers, partners, brokers, and legacy systems. As this scattered data becomes the biggest obstacle to automation and AI accuracy, organizations will shift attention upstream. The priority will be normalizing and enriching incoming data before it hits AI workflows. And companies that get it right will see faster operations, more dependable AI outputs, and a dramatically smoother path to true AI-driven transformation.
Enterprises Hit Pause on Legacy Migrations and Unlock Value Through AI-Ready Integrations
Enterprises will rethink costly “lift-and-shift” migrations and instead focus on modernizing legacy systems through smarter integration layers. As AI-native tools collide with non-native, decades-old systems and processes, the industry will realize that modernization doesn’t require ripping anything out. By wrapping legacy platforms with APIs and AI-ready connectors, organizations can expose hard-to-reach data, preserve proven business logic, and experiment with AI and automation faster, bridging the gap between legacy reliability and next-generation intelligence.
Industry-Specific AI and Vertical SaaS Will Outpace Horizontal Platforms in 2026
Enterprises will accelerate their shift away from broad, horizontal SaaS tools toward verticalized platforms and AI models built for the nuances of their industry. These specialized systems will deliver smarter automation, faster performance, and lower compute costs by focusing on tightly defined data patterns and workflows, far outperforming one-size-fits-all solutions. As proprietary data and domain-specific intelligence become competitive differentiators, companies will favor platforms that understand their business out of the box rather than forcing customization on generic tools.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Deepak Singh is the founder of Adeptia and is responsible for product strategy and technology development. Deepak has more than 16 years of experience in the application connectivity, data integration, middleware, and business process management technologies. Prior to starting Adeptia, Deepak was Director of Product Management at 3Com Corporation, where he was responsible for all aspects of product management and marketing for the Cable Modem Termination Systems (CMTS) business line. He worked with the initial team that started this new product line and saw the business grow to $40M annual revenue and 60+ employees. Deepak also worked at Netscape Communications as product manager. Earlier, Deepak worked at Advanced Micro Devices, where he designed a Fast Ethernet controller chip.
