ISG Launches First-of-its-Kind Index to Measure AI’s Impact on Technology Services Sector
Composite ISG AI Index™ up 77% since
Infrastructure leading the way, up 160%, followed by software, up 53%, and services, up 0.3%
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260416019018/en/
The ISG AI Index is a companion to the ISG Index™, the firm’s longstanding and authoritative source for marketplace intelligence on the global technology and business services industry. Detailed findings of the inaugural ISG AI Index will be presented during ISG’s first-quarter ISG Index presentation today at
“For 94 consecutive quarters, ISG has measured the performance of the global technology services industry through our ISG Index,” said
The ISG AI Index is pegged to a
Inaugural Results
The inaugural results of the ISG AI Index show that infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) has seen the greatest impact from AI, up 160 percent. Software as-a-service (SaaS) has risen 53 percent while managed services is up only slightly, at 0.3 percent. On a market-weighted basis, the composite ISG AI Index was up 77 percent since inception.
“What we are seeing from the ISG AI Index is that AI is already reshaping the technology services sector, but not evenly,” said
The ISG AI Index measures each of the three market segments through a combination of key performance indicators: revenue, profitability and stock price performance, along with one forward-looking AI indicator unique to each segment.
“For each segment, we picked one indicator that best shows how AI is impacting that part of the market,” Hall said. “In infrastructure, we use capital expenditure, because it tells us how much capacity hyperscalers are building ahead of demand. In software, we use current remaining performance obligations, or cRPO, which is essentially backlog—revenue that’s been sold but not yet recognized, making it one of the best forward-looking indicators of demand. And in services, we use revenue per employee, because it gives us a simple view of productivity—how much output providers are generating from their workforce as AI starts to change how work is done.”
Segment Performance
The clearest signal of AI’s impact on infrastructure services is capital expenditure, which is up 265 percent since the inception of the ISG AI Index. Revenue is up 100 percent, profitability is up 60 percent, and stock performance is up 113 percent.
In software, revenue is up 61 percent, profitability is up 18 percent and stock performance is up 39 percent, with cRPO up 71 percent. “This shows the market is still buying and backlog is still building. The market is simply trying to work out how AI changes pricing, monetization and long-term economics,” Hall said.
While the managed services composite is roughly flat, Hall said the underlying signals show revenue up 8 percent, profitability up 4 percent, stock performance down 36 percent and revenue per employee up nearly 8.5 percent. “What this tells us is that AI has started to improve productivity in services, but that has not yet translated into broad-based monetization or market confidence,” Hall said. “AI is having an impact, but that impact is still in the early stages.”
The next edition of the ISG AI Index, to be published after the second quarter, will include additional market measures: AI sentiment, tracking enterprise signals on demand, pricing, margins and investment priorities, and AI maturity, measuring enterprise readiness, constraints and adoption levels.
Further details about the ISG AI Index and its methodology can be found here.
About ISG
ISG (Nasdaq: III) is a global AI-centered technology research and advisory firm. A trusted partner to more than 900 clients, including 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is a long-time leader in technology and business services that is now at the forefront of leveraging AI to help organizations achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm, founded in 2006, is known for its proprietary market data and research, in-depth knowledge and governance of provider ecosystems, and the expertise of its 1,500 professionals worldwide working together to help clients maximize the value of their technology investments.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260416019018/en/
Press Contacts:
+1 203 517 3119
will.thoretz@isg-one.com
+1 978-518-4542
isg@matternow.com
Source: