Almost 9 in 10 (87%) of UK organisations using AI are already seeing measurable returns through productivity, cost savings and other commercial benefits, says new research by Product Experience (PX) company, Akeneo.

New findings in its Agentic Commerce Reality Check Report, which polled 1,000 senior IT decision-makers across the UK, U.S., France, Germany and Italy, showed AI was delivering varying levels of ROI across international markets.

Across all five countries, 83% of businesses report returns or improvements from AI adoption, rising to 87% in the UK and France – this compares with 84% in the U.S., 81% in Germany and 74% in Italy.

The UK also has one of the highest proportions of organisations reporting substantial returns from AI deployment.

Some 44% say they are seeing significant, measurable benefits and ROI from AI adoption, suggesting UK firms are taking a particularly commercial approach to assessing AI performance.

Almost two-thirds of UK respondents (64%) measure AI through efficiency and cost savings, compared with 55% internationally. The UK is also the market most likely to track AI’s contribution to revenue growth (60%).

“AI has reached the point where businesses are no longer being asked simply whether they are using it, but what it is contributing,” said Romain Fouache, CEO of Akeneo.

The UK’s performance is accompanied by comparatively strong confidence in the data and systems underpinning AI. Some 95% of UK businesses rate the product and operational data used by their AI systems as good or excellent, compared to just 36% internationally.

“The next challenge is turning individual gains into repeatable, scalable value. For commerce businesses, that means giving AI access to trusted, governed and usable product information,” Fouache continued.

“Without that foundation, organisations will continue to spend too much time preparing and reconciling data, and AI will struggle to make reliable decisions, support better CX or contribute consistently to business performance.”