2026年迈向AI原生的旅程报告释放你的内在优势

JourneytowardAI-Native

TM

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Contents

3Executivesummary

4

Afutureinflux

7TheAIinflectionpoint

8Shiftingfromdisconnectedpilot

tonewbusinessparadigm

9TheKyndrylperspective

10Truth#1:Everybusinessoutcome

dependsontechnology.

11Truth#2:Big-bangtransformations

areout;continuousreinventionisin

.

12Truth#3:Theanatomyofthe

workforceisbeingrewired

.

13ProgressingtowardAI-Native

15What’sdifferent?

16What’snotdifferent?

17JourneytoAI-Native

18ReducingrisksofAImodernization:

IntroducingtheKyndrylAgentic

AIFramework

21UnlockYourInsideEdge™withKyndryl

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Theoutcomesthatmattertoorganizationshaven’t

changed.Butthegamehas.Aperfectstormofmarket

uncertainty,rapidlyevolvingtechnology,andcompetitivedynamicsisimpactingtheoperatingenvironmentlike

neverbefore.Risingcosts,geopoliticalinstability,supplychainpressures,cyberthreats,skillsshortages,and

advancingartificialintelligencearedrivingmaterialchallengesacrosssectors.

Winningamidthisvolatilitydemandsanewparadigm:

Agilitybydesign.

AIatthecore.

Andpeoplecollaboratingwithdigitalagentsthat

areorchestratedintelligently,securebydesign,

andscalableacrosstheorganization.Theseelementscreateanenterprisethatcansense,respond,andactwithinpolicy,inrealtime.

Inthisevolution,AImovesbeyondanaddedlayerto

becomethereimaginedcoreoftheorganization.Now,

leaderscanoutpacecompetitorswithabusinessthat

cancontinuouslyadapttochange,reinventitself,createnewrevenuestreams,strengthenresilience,differentiate,anddelivercontinualcompetitiveedge.

WecallthistheAI-NativeEnterprise.Andinthis

paper,we’llcoverwhatthatmeans,what’schanging

forbusinesses(andwhat’snot),thejourneytowardAI-

Native,andhowKyndryl’sAgenticAIFrameworkcan

helpenableorganizationstoachievefasterspeedto

results.We’llalsodiscusshoworganizationscanwinwithpowerfulandflexibletechnologyfoundations(includingadvancedsecurity);changecultureembeddedintotheirDNA;andthebenefitofdecadesofKyndryl’smission-

criticalexpertise.

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Afutureinflux

Itusedtobethatleaderssetstrategyyearsahead.Therewereestablishedoperatingmodelsandlong-hardenedorganizationalstructures.And“transformation”mostlymeantdigitizationtooptimizeexistingprocessesand

experiences,withKPIsfocusedonefficiencygains,costreduction,andincrementalimprovements.Butinaneraofhistoricvolatility,traditionalstrategiesandstructuresarenolongersufficient.

Today,conductingbusinessisincreasinglyimpacted

bytheeffectsofongoingwarsandgeopoliticalconflicts,shiftingtariffs,regulatorychallenges,wideningrisk

exposure,newcompetitivepressures,andtalent

shortages.Furtherchallengesstemfromtheproliferationoftechnologiesandtherapidadvancementof

artificialintelligence.

Only31%ofbusiness

leadersreportfeelingreadyinthefaceofexternalrisks.1

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Businessesare

dealingwithvolatility,uncertainty,complexity,andambiguityfrom

aconvergenceofglobalforces.

MarketandCompetitive

geopoliticaldynamicsdynamics

40%

ofexecutivessaytheyfeel

unpreparedformarketshocks.2

Technologydynamics

Astechnologyevolvesandproliferates,themodernizationoflegacyestates

tomitigatecyberrisk,improve

experiences,anddriveefficiencybecomesparamount.

Rapidadvancementsinartificial

intelligenceofferbothchallengeandsignificantopportunity—butleadersarestrugglingtointegrateandscalethetechnology.

60%

ofleaderssaytheirorganizationstrugglestokeepupwith

technologyadvancements.6

64%

ofbusinessleadersdonotfeeltheirAIimplementationisreadytomanagefuturerisksanddisruptiveforces.7

1%

ofcompaniesbelievetheirAI

investmentshavereachedmaturity.8

76%

ofemployersreportdifficultyfillingrolesbecauseofskillsshortages.4

Warsandtariffscontinuetocausedisruptiontosupplychainsthe

worldover.

Regulatorychangescontinueto

challengehoworganizationsrespond.

Challengesrangefromgrowingcostpressurestocompetingwithnew

marketentrantsandnontraditionalcompetitorsasindustriesconverge.

Skillsshortagescontinuetochallengebusinessesandhamperprogress—evenasskillobsolescence

isaccelerating.

51%

ofleadersareworriedaboutglobaltalentshortages.5

56%+

ofleadersnamecyber-attacksasthebiggestthreattosupplychainstability.3

32%

feelconfidenttheyhavetheskillstheyneedforlong-termsuccess.5

So,whilethegoalsthatmattermosttoorganizationshaven’tchanged—profitableandsustainablegrowth,lowercosts,better

customerexperiences,security,andresilience—thegamehas.Withthiskindofvolatilitychallengingtheoperatingenvironment

likeneverbefore,it’snotonlymoredifficultforleaderstodelivertheoutcomesthey’reseeking,butit’salsobecomingimperativeforleaderstorethinkhowtheydobusinessinthefirstplace.

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Hyper-velocity

outsidedemandshyper-agilityinside

BusinessesmustpreparetomakechangeandagilitypartoforganizationalDNA—onlybydoingthiscantheykeeppacewithchangingconsumerandmarketdemands.

Agiletechnology

Ratherthanbuildingcomplex,

rigidsystems,leadersrecognize

theneedforcomposabilityintheir

technology—leveragingmodular

architecturestoenableperformanceandflexibilitywithoutvendorlock-in.

Businessesimplementing

composablecommercesolutionshaverealizedanaveragereturnoninvestmentof

156%

withinthefirst18monthsofdeployment.9

Theyalsoreporta42%

reductionindevelopmentcosts

anda37%decreaseinmaintenanceexpensescomparedtoprevious

monolithicsystems.9

Agiletalent

Skillsrequirementsarechanging—notonlyinhardskills(e.g.,technicalandcodingskills),butinpower

skills(criticalthinking,judgment,creativity).Organizationsmust

preparetomakeupskillingand

reskillingcontinuousprocesses

asthenatureofworkcontinuestoevolve.TheymustalsoproactivelymanagechangetomakeitpartoftheirculturalDNA.

Employersexpectthat

39%

ofkeyskillsrequiredinthejobmarketwillchangeby2030.10

50%

ofCEOssaytheircultureandworkforceadaptabilitymovetooslowly.11

Agileprocess

Theoldtextbookoflinearstrategyandwaterfallprocessisdead.

Today’senvironmentdemands

thatweexpect—anddesign—

forchange,andthatleadersembracethis.Roadmapsmustnowbeflexible,andspeedtoimpactmattersmore

thanever.

Nearly

1in5

organizationsarenowreinventingfasterthantheirbudgetarycycles.12

57%

ofexecutivessaythatthey’remissingopportunitiesbecausetheycan’tmakedecisions

quicklyenough.13

→agile

Technology:rigid

→skillsandtasks,

changeasculture

Talent:

functionsandjobs

dynamicoperations

Process:

staticstrategy

Winninginthisenvironmentrequiresboldchangeinthewayweboththinkaboutandarchitectorganizationsforsuccess.It’sclear:Thiseraofuncertaintyanddisruptiondemandsanewparadigm.

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TheAI

inflectionpoint

Artificialintelligencemarksapivotalshift—building

onroboticprocessautomationandmachinelearning

tounlockgenerativecapabilitiesandusherintheeraof

agenticAI.Thisevolutiontakesthepromiseofautomationfurtherwiththeintroductionandorchestrationof

intelligentagentsintothearchitecture.Theseintelligentagentsreason,adapt,andact,handlingtasksand

collaboratingwithpeopleacrosstheorganization.AI

agentsrepresentastepchangeinenterpriseAI.Inthismodel,agentscanunderstandgoals;breakthosegoalsintosmallersub-tasks;interactwithpeople,teams,andsystemsalike;andexecuteandadaptinrealtime.

Andthetechnologyjustkeepsadvancing,delivering

capabilitiestoenablethekindofcompetitiveadvantagethatwasn’tpossiblepreviously.Yet,leadersacross

sectorsarestrugglingtodrivemeaningfuladoptionorscaleAIsecurelyacrosstheirorganizations.Thisresults

inascatteringofdisconnectedproofsofconceptandone-offworkstreamsthatneverdeliver

tangiblevalue.

61%

ofCEOssaycompetitiveadvantagedependsonwhohasthemostadvancedAI.14

74%

ofU.S.CEOsadmitthey’lllosetheirjobwithintwoyearsiftheydon’tdelivermeasurableAIbusinessgains.15

8in10

companiesareactivelyusingAI.16

9in10

pilotsfailtomakeareturnoninvestment.17

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Shiftingfromdisconnected

pilottonewbusinessparadigm

AgenticAIispoisedtodelivermonumentalimprovementsinspeed,efficiency,modernization,andexperience.Butthat’sjustthebeginning.Thetruepromiseisinenablingenterprisestomovebeyondstaticworkflowsandrigid

systemstodynamic,autonomousoperationswithfull

transparencyandhumanoversight.It’safundamental

reimaginingoftheoperatingmodelitself,butalsoofthecoreroles,functions,dependencies,andenablersacrossteams,technologies,andprocesses.

Consider:AIexpandsthemeaningofITinfrastructure

toincludedigitalagentsasnewassets.Whatthisreallymeansistheadventofuniquerequirementsforsecurity,governance,andmanagementasHRandITbegintoblur.

Equally,themeaningof“infrastructure”itselfexpandstoincludetheprocessandapplicationlayers,transitioningstaticorcondition-basedenvironmentsintotruly

intelligent,dynamicenterprises.

However,thisopportunitycomeswithachallenge:

integratingthesenewintelligentsystemswithcomplex

legacytechnologyenvironments.Andit’struethatagentsrepresentboththemodernizedendstatebutalsothe

meanstomodernizinginthefirstplace.Soit’snowonderthatleadersareunsureaboutwhere,how,andwhento

prioritizewhichAIentrypoint.AndwhymostexecutivesseeAI’spotentialbutdonotfeelwell-positionedtodeployitstrategically.

Thisgapbetweenambitionandexecutionisthecriticalchallengefortoday’senterpriseleaders.

AndonethatKyndrylispositionedtohelpleaderssolve.

TheKyndrylperspective

TorealizetrueROIwithAIagents—includingcost

optimization,timetovalue,productivity,andgrowthandinnovation—enterpriseleadersmustfirstacknowledgethreetruths.

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Truth#1:

Everybusiness

outcomedependsontechnology.

Onceanenablerof—orobstacleto—businessoutcomes,technologyisnowwhatdrivesbusinessoutcomes.

Thatmeanseverybusinessambitionhasadeepand

intimatedependencyonitstechnologycapabilities.Butthecomplexionofthattechnologyischanging,asisthedisciplineneededtomanagethechange.Understandinghoweachworkflowandtechnologylayerconnectsto,

supports,andenablesthenextisessentialtoarchitectingandoptimizingthesystemtodelivertheoutcomes

thatmatter.

Thisrelationshipbetweentechnologyandbusiness

outcomesbecomesevenmorecriticalasorganizationsbegintomeaningfullyintegrateAI.Thisintegration

requiresstrongfoundationaldata,securitybydesign,computationalpower,andseamlessinteroperabilityacrossthestackatscale.

Wecallthis

“chiptoexperience.”

Businessoutcomes

Deeptech

Experienceandbusinessprocess

Applications

Toolingandsecurity

Foundationalmodels

Dataplatforms

Partnerecosystems

Hardware

Chips/Edge

Expanding technologyinfrastructure

11

Truth#2:

Big-bang

transformations

areout;continuousreinventionisin.

70%

oftransformationinitiatives

failtoachievetheirambitions.18

Thechallengesrangefrominitiativesthataretoobig

ortaketoolong,tothosethatdivorcestrategyfrom

execution.Whateverthereason,bythetimethey’re

complete,themarkethasmovedonandit’stimeto

startagain.Thiskindoftransformationisnowaliability.

Asmarketconditionscontinuetochange,ourdefinitionoftransformationisalsochanging.It’snolongeraboutlargetransformationinitiativeswithastaticendstate.Now,

leadersmustprioritizecontinuous,incrementalevolutionandagilityacrosstechnology,talent,andprocesses.

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Truth#3:

Theanatomyoftheworkforceisbeingrewired.

AsAIcontinuestoevolve,enterpriseswillneedto

reimaginethecompositionoftheirworkforcestoincludepeopleandAIagentsworkingtogether.Thiswillrequireanewwayofthinkingaboutandmanagingtalent.Inthisnewmodel,theroleofITisrecastastheHRfunctionforagents—responsiblenotjustformanagingsystems,butfordeploying,managing,andoverseeingteamsofagentsacrosstheorganization.

Withagentsalreadydeliveringsignificantefficiency

gainsacrosslower-skilltasks,bothtraditionalconstructsoforganizationalchartsandroleprofilesfaceexistentialquestions.Whathappenstoentry-levelrolesifagents

canhandlelow-skillworkwithexponentialpaceandaccuracy?Andifagentsaredeployedforincreasinglycomplextasks,whatdoesthatmeanforwherewe

positionuniquelyhumanvalue?

Displacementconcernsposeobviouschallengesfor

leadersandcolleaguesalike.Butwiththechanging

natureofwork,areportfromtheWorldEconomicForumindicatesthatAIissettocreateasmanyas170million

newjobsinthenextfiveyears.19Avitalquestionfor

leadersinthischangingenvironmentishowtorecastthevalueofpeople,shapefutureprofessions,andsetpositiveculturalparametersforthisnewworkforce.

AsNVIDIACEOJensenHuangsaid,“You’renotgoingtoloseyourjobtoanAI,butyou’regoingtoloseyour

jobtosomeonewhousesAI.”20Ineithercase,thefuturecomplexionoftheworkforceandnatureofworkitselfrequireleaderstothinkverydifferentlyaboutthefutureanatomyoftheirorganizations.

TheshiftingrolesoftheCIOandCHRO

TheCIO

TheCIO’sroleisfundamentally

shifting.WiththeadventofagenticAI,

technologyleadersmustnoworchestrateanewdynamicenterpriseengine.This

representsaprofoundopportunitytodriveandimplementinnovationandoperationalefficiency.

TheCHRO

TheCHROmandateistomanage

blendedteamsofpeopleandagents

whileupskillingtheirpeople.Thisrequiresthemtosharpenthefocusonchange

managementandtakeasystemic

approachtoskills.Equally,theymust

equipemployeestoresponsiblymanageandcollaboratewiththeiragentic

counterpartsaspartofthenewculture.

Progressing

toward

AI-Native

Inaworldwheretechnologypowersoutcomes,transformationiscontinuous,andagentsbecomeacorepartofworkforces,thequestionisnolongeraboutthewhatorwhenofagenticAI.Rather,it’saboutthehow:

•Howtoorchestrateagentsacrosscomplextechnologysystems

•Howtosecurethemwithembeddedsecuritybydesignandgovernance

•Howtoscalefromisolatedpilotstoenterprise-wideadoption

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Currently,mostapproacheslayerAIontoexisting

structuresandworkflows,withthegoalofenhancing

efficiencyoroptimizingcostsassociatedwithexistingbusinessmodelsandprocesses.Buttocapitalizeon

thetruepotentialofagenticAI,growth-orientedleadersaredrivinganeworganizationalparadigm.Here,AI

isn’talayerontopofexistingprocesses,butratherthereimaginedcoreoftheentireorganization.

BydesigningwithAIcapabilitiesatthecenter,

organizationscanmovefromstaticdigitizationtowarddynamic,autonomousenterpriseswhereinformation

flowsfreelyacrosstheorganization.Intheseenterprises,peopleandagentsworktogethertoexecutecomplex

processesinrealtimeandatscale,withina

self-optimizingsystemthatincludesembeddedsecuritybydesign.

KyndryldefinesthisastheAI-Native

Enterprise.

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What’sdifferent?

Fromsiloedandfragmentedfunctions,workflows,andtechnologyto...

Dataandworkflows

Dataandworkflows

Dataandworkflows

Dataandworkflows

>

agentsthatworkacrossworkflowsand

technologyfoundations,removingsilosandenablingfree-flowinginformationbydesign

Informationflowandoversight→

Agent

Agent

Technologyfoundations

Agent

Agent

Again,intheAI-NativeEnterprise,AIisn’tboltedonto

existinginfrastructure,processes,ormodels.Rather,theenterpriseisreimaginedwithAIatthecore.Inthismodel,criticalhumandirection,judgment,andcontrolremain

absolute.Leaderscontinuetosetstrategy,governance,andsecurityprotocols—butthewaytheorganizationoperateschangesfundamentally.

Inthepast,organizationscreatedsilosbydesign.

Departmentsandfunctionswereestablishedto

manageindividualprocesses,technology,anddatalinkedtospecificworkflowsandoperations.Gainingvisibilityandcontrolacrosssilosmeantreconcilingsystemanddataintegration,oftensupplemented

bymanualprocessesandcommunicationsacrossafragmentedtechnologysystem.

TheAI-NativeEnterprisebreaksthismodelbyusingAItodissolvesilosandmovetowardmorecompleteoversightandorchestrationacrosstheorganization.

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What,snotdifferent?

ThesuccessfuldeploymentofagenticAIisasmuch

apeoplechallengeasitisatechnologyone.Soit’sjust

asimportanttoacknowledgethatAIagentswon’treplacepeople.Norwilltheyreplacewhatisuniquetopeople,likecreativity,imagination,collaboration,orempathy—and

critically,humanoversight,judgment,andcontrol.

Leaderswillcontinuetosetstrategyandmakecriticaldecisions.Vitalsecurityandgovernanceprotocols

alsostayinplacebutgetstrengthenedbyintelligent

monitoringandadaptivecompliancesystems.Thesehelptoensuretransparency,auditability,andpeople-in-the-loopbusinesscontrols.

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Journeytoward

AI-Native

Fundamentally,AIrequiresorganizationstoevolvehowtheymanagetheirtechnologysystemsand

Increasingvalue

howtheydesignandrunbusinessprocesses.Italsorequiresthemtoreimaginethewaytheyworkwiththeiremployees.ItdemandsAI-readyinfrastructure,governeddata,andembeddedsecurity—integratedwithmodernplatformsandapplications.

Butit’simportanttorememberthatAI-NativeisaNorthStarstate.Thejourneyitselfrequirescarefulexecution—fromtechnologymodernizationandGenAIinfrastructure,modelsandengineering,toproactiveorganizational

changemanagementandworkforcereadiness.

Thespeedandscaleofthejourneywilldependon

ambition,riskappetite,andaccesstotherightexpertisetomakeAI-NativeEnterpriseareality.Andallthis

withoutcompromisingbusinesscontinuity,security,orperformancealongtheway.

Whereverorganizationsareontheirjourneystoward

AI-Native,movingfromone-offprojectstothefull

potentialofagenticAIatscaledependsontheright

foundationscoupledwithnewtransformationprinciplesandoperatingstructures.

That’sexactlywhereKyndrylcanhelp.

AImaturitycontinuum

Scale

Startsmall

Reimagine

>

•AI-firstdesign

ofdecisionsandworkflowsatscale

•Agentsorchestratedenterprise-wide

underpolicy

•Continuouslearningdrivesagilityand

newgrowth

•Targetpilotsin

existingworkflowstoprovevalue

•Earlywinsbuildsponsorship

andconfidence

•Readinessgrows

asmoreoperationsadoptAIcapabilities

•Coreplatformsandgovernanceinplaceforscale

•Programsexpandacrossworkflowsanddomainswithhumanoversight

•ITandbusiness

co-wonoutcomesandaccountability

ReducingrisksofAImodernization:

IntroducingtheKyndrylAgenticAIFramework

Astheworld’slargestITinfrastructureservicesproviderformission-criticaltechnologysystems,weunderstandwhatittakestomovetowardAI-Native,andwhat’satstake.

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Previously,modernizingatechnologysystemtoenableinnovationslikeagenticAIwasaminefieldofblindspotsandhiddendependencies.

ButwithKyndryl,it’spossibletoreducetheriskofmodernizationandaccelerateagenticAI,andROI,throughtheKyndrylAgenticAIFramework.

Kyndryl’sAgenticAIFrameworkisourapproachto

helpingcustomerstransformtheirAIinvestmentsfromisolatedpilotsandworkflowsintocorecomponentsoftheirbusinessengines.Atthecoreisasecure-by-designagenticcapabilitywiththeembeddedtechnologyto

orchestrate,secure,andscaleAIagents.Theseagentshavetheabilitytosense,respond,andactwithin

policy—acrosstheentireenterprise,allinrealtime.

ThroughtheFramework,weapplypeople-centric

design,composablearchitecture,seamlessintegration,interoperabilityacrosstechnologiesandAImodels,

datasovereigntybydesign,policy-drivenintelligence,andtransparentdecision-making.

Builton100%open-sourcearchitectureforcomplete

transparencyandcontrol,ourframeworkcanbeappliedanywhere—on-premises,edge,cloud,orhybrid.Itworkswithexistingplatformsandapplicationstomake

anorganization’ssystemssmarter.

Overthenextcoupleofpages,we’llexplainwhytheFrameworkisthebestwaytoaccelerateadoption,cuttimetovalue,andboosttheimpactofagenticAI.

“Ourdeepdataexpertiseand

ourcustomer-first,vendor-

neutralapproachhelpus

focusondeliveringbusiness

valuewhilemanagingthe

ethical,legal,andregulatory

risksofAI.OurrobustAl

governanceprocessescontributetoKyndryl’sreputationasatrustedAlpartner.”

MichaelBradshaw

KyndrylGlobalPracticeLeaderApplications,DataandAI

20

Buildnext-generationexperiences

Astepchangeinoperationalagility

necessitatesanequalstepchangein

experiencedesign.Ourapproachdraws

onhuman-centereddesignprinciplesandglobalpartnershipstodesign,build,andrunnext-generationAI-enabledUIandUXto

maximizeadoptionandimpactacross:

•AI-Nativecustomerjourneydesigns

•Employeeexperienceanduserinterfacedesigns

•Dynamicandagiledigitalfrontendsthatadapttochangingconditions

Connectthe

futureworkforce

TechnologyisonlyonesideoftheAIcoin.

Talentistheother.Kyndrylhelpsorganizationstakea360-degreeapproachtoworkforce

readinesstoensureasmoothtransitionand

driveadoption,productivity,andcollaboration:

•Skillsassessmentandgapanalysis

•Role-specifictrainingintegratedintodailywork

•Jobandtaskredesigntofreepeopletofocusonhigh-priorityactivities

•ClearcareerpathsintheAI-Nativeorganization

•Continuouscapabilitydevelopmentprograms

•Change-managementprinciplesandapproaches

Maintainmandatesforsecurity,governance,andresponsibleAI

Whileapilotwith100usersposesmanageablerisk,scalingto10,000usersacrosscritical

systemstriggersbroadersecurityand

complianceconcerns.Kyndryl’sapproachincludessecuritybydesign:

•Zero-trustsecurityarchitectureandindustry-standardencryption

•Role-basedaccesscontrolswithfine-grainedpermissions,explainability,andcomprehensiveaudittrails

•Continuoussecurityandcompliance

monitoring,as