Despite significant industry buzz around artificial intelligence, Nordic companies remain hesitant to fully embrace its potential. According to a new study by Tietoevry Create, only 17% of IT decision-makers in Finland and Sweden believe AI is currently making a significant commercial impact.
While AI has been used in some form for years, most organisations are only now exploring the potential of generative AI, with widespread adoption still limited.
The research revealed that 52% of Nordic organisations are still in the early stages of AI deployment. Only 7% reported that AI tools are widely used across their workforce. For most businesses, AI currently plays a supporting role, primarily in customer service (42%), IT (41%), and research and development (36%).
Barriers to deeper integration remain widespread. The top challenges identified include the complexity of integrating AI into legacy systems (31%), a shortage of internal AI expertise (29%), and difficulties pinpointing the right use cases (27%). This hesitation has led many firms to take a cautious approach, with 65% expecting only gradual growth in AI’s role, typically confined to specific departments.
Efficiency remains the strongest incentive for adopting AI, cited by 65% of respondents. Other motivations include modernisation (37%), cost reduction (33%), and enhancing customer experience (32%). While some respondents view AI as a tool for improving work-life quality and reducing repetitive tasks, concerns over job losses remain relatively low.
Tietoevry Create global director – AI enabled future Thomas Rosqvist said, “More efficient use of AI tools could still significantly free up experts’ time for creativity and innovation. This raises hopes for a shift in focus from cost-cutting and efficiency to the genuine competitive advantages that technology can enable. Right now, companies are looking for AI realism instead of hype.”
Security and regulatory concerns continue to weigh heavily on organisations. Two-thirds of companies in both Finland and Sweden expressed worries over data protection and AI-related risks. Uncertainty around generative AI regulations is also limiting full-scale deployment.
Rosqvist added, “In the future, AI has the potential to help solve many societal challenges. Even today, we are supporting our clients in creating cost-effective and sustainable services with the help of AI – solutions that benefit not only individual organizations but society as a whole.”
Tietoevry Create’s study was based on a combination of qualitative interviews and a quantitative survey. Ten in-depth interviews were conducted between January and March 2025, while a broader survey of 415 IT decision-makers took place in February 2025. The final report is expected to be released in early May.
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