APAC organisations have shifted focus to growth, with 74% of firms having AI initiatives underway and 95% having dedicated AI funding, according to research by Omdia commissioned by Boomi, “AI Ambition Meets Data Reality: APAC Technology Priorities and Challenges”.
However, many organisations still lack the policies, governance frameworks, and success metrics needed to measure business value consistently.
AI governance hasn’t kept pace with adoption
Based on a survey of more than 1,100 senior technology and business decision-makers across Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines, the report found that only 50% have AI-specific data policies. In contrast, 22% have no metrics or KPIs to measure whether their AI initiatives are actually working.
“This gap matters because AI is only as good as the data feeding it. Organisations can deploy the most sophisticated models available and still get unreliable outputs if the underlying data is ungoverned, inconsistent, or incomplete. The research found that 93% of APAC firms recognise that AI will drive a greater focus on data quality and governance. The awareness is there. But the follow-through hasn’t caught up,” said David Irecki, CTO and senior director of Solution Engineering for APJ at Boomi.
Need for a unified platform
90% of APAC organisations want to move to a unified, AI-ready integration platform, but only about half have one.
Moreover, 81% of APAC firms acknowledge that unmanaged “shadow” integrations, unofficial connections and data flows that have grown up outside IT governance, are already undermining data quality and confidence.
The research found that organisations that close this gap will grow faster, with the majority (89%) actively working to reduce tool and technology sprawl. Over 90% are consolidating technology across data integration, API management, and automation.
“The real objective is data activation — ensuring trusted data can move securely across systems, applications, processes and AI agents so organisations can make faster decisions and automate with confidence. This requires a strong data foundation — connected and protected by a reliable, secure, modern integration platform,” Irecki added.
