Companies have reached an inflection point in their use of artificial intelligence (AI). According to the AI edition of the 2025 Celonis Process Optimization Report, the technology is already ubiquitous, with 99% of organizations deploying in some way.
However, so far, companies have primarily applied AI to relatively simple, small-scale use cases such as customer service chatbots and developer support. These applications are undoubtedly beneficial in their own way, but they simply scratch the surface of what technology can do.
To deliver real value, businesses need to begin deploying AI at a more strategic level and apply it to core operations to drive real business outcomes.
AI has been identified as the best strategic opportunity
The study, which surveyed more than 1,600 business leaders around the world, reveals that companies view AI as a strategic opportunity over the next two years, in addition to closely related opportunities to increase productivity. Many have already experimented with more strategic AI use cases and have big plans for the year.
For example, 96% of supply chain leaders say they intend to use AI for transportation networks and route planning over the next 12 months, while 98% say they will use it for warehouse automation. Additionally, 92% of financial and shared services leaders say they will use AI to optimize cash flows next year, with an additional 90% planning to implement it to help regulate compliance.
But before companies see success in these more strategic AI use cases, they must first provide the technology with the right data and context to make informed decisions.
AI needs process intelligence to make it smarter
AI requires both process data and business context to effectively apply it to strategic business use cases.
Understanding processes (provided by process data) helps AI to understand how activities are sequenced within a business or department, and what they are happening in the entire system, upstream, downstream, and in parallel. The business context must provide AI with business-specific rules, benchmarks and KPIs, and make the right decisions at the right time for the company. Process intelligence allows AI to access both process understanding and business context.
The survey shows that the majority of business leaders understand the need for process intelligence, with 89% saying it is important and AI has the context of how business is deployed effectively. Also, over half (58%) are concerned that the current state of the process could limit the ability to advance AI.
In fact, a lack of process understanding may already be hampering the strategic deployment of AI. When asked to show business leaders three biggest warning signs that their organization's process understanding is slow, adopting AI was one of the most common answers (second to increased operating costs).
To make the most of AI opportunities, companies need to understand and optimize their core processes.
AI is used to improve processes
When deploying AI for strategic use cases, businesses need to understand and optimize the process, something AI technology can help. Encouraged, 81% of business leaders expect AI to use directly to improve corporate processes for the next 12 months.
Approximately half of the process improvement and operational leaders who participated in the research are already using AI to optimize their business processes. For example, 52% use AI to continuously improve processes, while 51% use technology to automate processes.
Even in regions where AI adoption is currently relatively low, process improvements and operational leaders have high ambitions for the next year. For example, only 39% are currently using AI to model and redesign processes, while 91% plan to implement AI for this purpose.
Process intelligence is key to the next phase of AI
As organizations around the world move on from the early small applications of AI to more strategic use cases, process intelligence is critical to driving real value. If AI has a deep understanding of how enterprise processes actually run and what business context needs to make the right decisions, it can apply to core operations and provide a truly game-changing impact.
To learn more about how we use or use AI in different departments, as well as the most pressing concerns about technology deployment, check out the AI edition of the 2025 Celonis Process Optimization Report.
