Global AI spend — $632B by 2028
The data
Global AI spend projected at ~200B by 2028 (59% CAGR).
Supporting adoption figures from the same paper:
- 65% of organizations report using genAI in at least one function (McKinsey, 2024).
- 82% of businesses see genAI as a main lever for reinvention (Accenture).
Source
IDC (FutureScape forecast series), surfaced through World Economic Forum & Accenture, AI in Action: Beyond Experimentation to Transform Industry, January 2025. See wef-ai-in-action-2025.
What it shows
The bull-frame quantification of the spend trajectory — the demand side that the hyperscaler-capex-trajectory supply side is sized against. The 29% / 59% CAGRs are aggressive by enterprise-software standards but consistent with the period’s announced budgets.
The bear question this figure invites: what fraction of the $632B is net-new non-tech enterprise demand vs. recycled VC capital and intra-tech spend? IDC does not decompose this.
How to cite
IDC projects global AI spend to reach ~200B (59% CAGR), cited in WEF / Accenture, AI in Action, 2025.
Connections
- wef-ai-in-action-2025 — surfacing source.
- circular-ai-economy — the bear lens on what this spend actually represents.
- hyperscaler-capex-trajectory — the supply-side dollar trajectory this demand projection has to fund.
- foundational-enablers — what WEF says is needed to convert this spend into value.
- scaling-gap-74-16 — the gap that complicates the conversion.