Enterprises are sweating legacy IT assets as AI investment grows

Enterprise companies are becoming more cautious when it comes to replacing their outdated IT infrastructure, as the growing investment in artificial intelligence (AI) has shifted their focus. According to a report from managed services provider Ensono, 78% of IT decision-makers consider legacy systems as more crucial today than they did two years ago. This is because these legacy systems are seen as vital for successful AI implementation within their organizations.

The report, based on a survey of 500 IT professionals across the US and UK, reveals that AI is altering modernization priorities, but businesses are still struggling with common challenges like budget overruns, delayed projects, and limited human resources. Ensono's data shows that 45% of companies are scaling AI deployments across their organizations, while 44% are investing in targeted, high-impact use cases.

Supporting AI, automation, and data initiatives has become the primary driver for modernization efforts, with over half of the firms stating that AI contributes to these initiatives through increased automation and efficiency. However, integrating AI into existing workflows and infrastructure limitations are the main barriers to achieving AI goals, according to 33% and 28% of respondents, respectively.

As a result, legacy systems like mainframes are taking on new strategic importance, as nearly half of the organizations view them as essential foundations for AI, offering valuable data sources. Additionally, 47% of companies selectively use legacy systems for specific AI applications. Ensono's Chief Strategy Officer, Brian Klingbeil, highlights the power of these systems, which contain vast amounts of data and business logic that drive many businesses.

A shift towards augmenting and extending legacy systems rather than outright replacement is becoming more prevalent, particularly in the UK (57% of respondents) compared to the US (48%). This approach is gaining traction as enterprises discover the immense potential of mainframes as reliable and efficient sources of computing, which can be augmented with AI capabilities.

Infrastructure services firm Kyndryl has previously noted the growing trend of using mainframes to host and run AI workloads. Analyst Gartner also supports this approach, stating that migrating workloads to a mainframe is more advantageous for VMware users than adopting Broadcom's new licenses.

Furthermore, HPE's managing director for the UK, Middle East, and Africa emphasizes that enterprise customers are opting to prolong their IT asset refresh cycles, extending them from five years to seven years. This forced reevaluation of asset management decisions is fundamentally changing how organizations approach their IT strategies in the era of AI.