Worldwide IT spending is expected to total $5.74 trillion in 2025, an increase of 9.3 per cent from 2024, according to the latest forecast by Gartner.
The analyst firm expects this increase to be driven by server sales and spending in GenAI.
John-David Lovelock, vice president analyst, Gartner, explained, “Current spending on GenAI has been predominantly from technology companies building the supply-side infrastructure for GenAI.
“CIOs will begin to spend on GenAI, beyond proof-of-concept work, starting in 2025. More money will be spent, but the expectations that CIOs have for the capabilities of GenAI will drop. The reality of what can be accomplished with current GenAI models, and the state of CIO’s data will not meet today’s lofty expectations.”
Gartner has broken its Worldwide IT Spending Forecast into the below areas. The table below uses millions of US dollars.
|
|
2024 spending |
2024 growth (%) |
2025 spending |
2025 growth (%) |
|
Data center systems |
318,008 |
34.7 |
367,171 |
15.5 |
|
Devices |
735,764 |
6.2 |
805,722 |
9.5 |
|
Software |
1,087,800 |
11.7 |
1,239,779 |
14.0 |
|
IT services |
1,587,913 |
5.6 |
1,737,754 |
9.4 |
|
Communication services |
1,530,299 |
2.0 |
1,596,890 |
4.4 |
|
Overall IT |
5,259,784 |
7.2 |
5,747,317 |
9.3 |
Source: Gartner (October 2024)
Lovelock added, “GenAI will easily eclipse the effects that cloud and outsourcing vendors had on previous years regarding data centre systems.
“It took 20 years for the cloud and outsourcing vendors to build up spending to $67 billion a year on servers. The demand of GenAI will help nearly triple server sales from 2023 to 2028.”
Vivek Behl, vice president, strategy, WalkMe, commented, “CIOs are certainly becoming more realistic with what GenAI can achieve. This means it’s unlikely we will see AI replacing human employees any time soon, but that does not mean people can rest on their laurels.
“In the next year, business use of GenAI will shift up a gear, from ‘text to text’ to ‘text to action’. This will move businesses further down the road to hyperproductivity, but employees who are unwilling or unable to keep pace with this evolution risk being replaced by people who are.
“As well as words of warning, there is reason for real optimism in Gartner’s latest forecast. With GenAI at the heart of the predicted 9.3 per cent increase in IT spending, the real winners in the gold rush will be the ones selling the shovels.
“Businesses that are providing the tools to either bring AI projects to fruition or help businesses and their employees start putting them to work, will be sat at the centre of a perfect storm.”