Three in four (73%) organizations admit there's a gap between their ambitions and reality when it comes to deploying agentic AI tools, and it's because they lack trust.

A report from Camunda reveals that despite 71% of organizations using AI agents, only 11% of use cases reached production last year. Business risks (84%), transparency (80%) and regulatory/compliance concerns (66%) are the main hurdles – but businesses are still going all‑in on investments, leading to appallingly low ROI.

Key take‑aways

• Business risks, transparency, and compliance are the biggest hurdles for agentic AI deployment.

• Nearly half of organizations are running AI agents in silos.

• Allowing AI to adapt to workload variables is key.

Agentic AI isn’t being used to its full potential

Four in five respondents were found to be using AI agents only as chatbots or assistants, with nearly half (48%) admitting that their agentic systems work in silos, lacking full context. Many AI‑agent applications also require human approval, preventing them from being as effective as the technology suggests.

“Right now, exercising caution with agentic AI means many organizations can’t move beyond pilots or isolated use cases,” Camunda Customer Success SVP Kurt Petersen wrote. “Once a foundation of trust is in place, agents can become powerful multipliers inside governed processes instead of siloed copilots or chatbots.”

Those who did use agentic AI’s full capabilities saw strong results – 95% reported business growth from automation, and nearly four in five (79%) plan to increase automation spend as a result. With tech stacks becoming far more distributed (76% agree), agentic AI could hold the key to tying multiple systems together.

Camunda says the answer lies in agentic orchestration, which combines deterministic orchestration (fixed rules and workflows) with dynamic orchestration (agentic AI responding and adapting to variables).

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About the author

Craig Hale – With several years’ experience freelancing in tech and automotive circles, Craig’s interests lie in technology designed to improve our lives, including AI and ML, productivity aids, and smart fitness. He is also passionate about cars and the decarbonisation of personal transportation. As an avid bargain‑hunter, any deal Craig finds is top value.