With the 2027 end of mainstream support for ECC fast approaching, S/4HANA adoption momentum is ramping up. In fact, only 31% of respondents to SAPinsider’s SAP S/4HANA Migration 2025 Benchmark Report said their organizations had completed the transition, while 26% said they are in the implementation process, leaving a sizeable number of organizations grappling with the path forward.
But for many enterprises, as the window to make the move before end of mainstream support closes, a complex transition is only becoming more so. The reason? AI.
Organizations considering the transition to S/4HANA who want to take advantage of AI have some big decisions to make, both in terms of what functionality will best serve them and how they access it.
To begin to narrow down a direction, organizations must first consider how they can benefit from AI. What are the opportunities and use cases? As AI matures and becomes more deeply embedded across SAP solutions, we’re seeing increased focus on practical, business-driven AI approaches that deliver measurable value, with a strong focus on integration, automation, and governance.
The following are key areas of impact to consider when evaluating your path forward:
AI agents—such as SAP’s Joule copilot—automate and optimize business processes across finance, sales, HR, and customer service. Joule now supports up to 80% of the most-used business tasks in SAP, moving beyond simple automation to solve problems and providing insights using enterprise data.
With Joule Studio, organizations can build and deploy custom AI agents using low-code/no-code tools, democratizing AI development and allowing tailored solutions for unique workflows.
Integrating SAP data with external data sources enables companies to generate cross-platform AI-powered insights and improve decision-making. The advantages of this extend to virtually every area of the business—cross-platform data insights can support improved forecasting and planning, supply chain optimization, and compliance and risk management, for example.
The SAP Business Data Cloud, launched in partnership with Databricks, exemplifies this trend by connecting disparate data for more holistic analytics.
AI can be leveraged for change management, using models that analyze user behavior and communication patterns to predict resistance and personalize training. This proactive approach helps increase adoption rates and smooth transitions during digital transformation initiatives—like an S/4HANA transformation.
AI-driven customer support can help organizations shift from reactive to proactive and preventative models of service, reducing friction and gaining customer trust and loyalty. This includes real-time monitoring, predictive analytics to prevent issues, and systematic analysis of customer feedback to drive continuous improvement. Similarly, AI-enabled support tools reduce ticket volumes, improve uptime during critical periods, and enable faster resolution of issues before they escalate can greatly improve customer experience.
Specialized AI models tailored toward specific industries and business functions, rather than generic AI tools can meet industry-specific needs and deliver a competitive advantage. SAP is responding by not only embedding AI into core products but also developing industry-specific solutions. We are, for instance, seeing significant momentum around AI-fueled supply chain optimization among SAP customers.
SAP customers have numerous paths forward as they embrace and evolve their approach to AI. Some are increasingly adopting new SAP AI platforms, such as AI Foundation and Joule Studio, to simplify and accelerate AI development, reduce costs, and empower both technical and business users to build intelligent solutions. Others are leveraging embedded AI capabilities across SAP S/4HANA Cloud, SAP SuccessFactors, SAP Signavio, and other modules to automate routine tasks and extract actionable insights.
As AI becomes more integral to SAP’s ecosystem, many organizations are also rethinking their cloud migration strategies—particularly through initiatives like RISE with SAP—to gain access to the latest AI innovations. With the end of mainstream support for SAP ECC approaching in 2027, there is growing urgency to transition to S/4HANA, often via a clean core approach—a shift that requires careful planning and major decisions, including financial considerations such as transitioning from a CapEx to OpEx financial model.
The ongoing evolution of AI—and the rapid pace that SAP is embedding and integrating it into its solutions, means the path forward is a moving target. As with everything in business, regardless of your path, you will likely need to pivot along the way.
Contact Baer to learn how our teams and consultants can move your program forward.