88% of Luxembourg firms target AI for productivity

An overwhelming majority of companies in Luxembourg are convinced of artificial intelligence’s potential, with 88% identifying “increased productivity and efficiency” as the primary benefit of adoption. This finding, from the 2026 "Perspectives on AI" study by FEDIL, Luxinnovation and Luxembourg AI Factory, confirms that the era of experimentation is over.

Yet the report reveals that this optimism now faces a new set of complex barriers. As companies move to industrialise AI, the focus has shifted from why they should adopt it to how they can do so profitably, compliantly and securely.

The new barriers to AI return on investment

While technical skills were the main obstacle in 2025, the survey shows the total cost of ownership (TCO) has now become the number one barrier to large-scale deployment. Companies are facing the full financial reality of industrialising AI, from data preparation and infrastructure to cybersecurity and maintenance.

This financial pressure is compounded by what the report calls a “structural gap” in data readiness. According to the study, while 79% of companies collect customer data, only 35% systematically assess its quality, and just 23% use it for strategic decision-making. This gap between data availability and its actual usability is a major obstacle to creating value and achieving the productivity gains that 88% of firms expect.

How the EU AI Act and sovereignty are reshaping AI strategy

The push for a return on investment is now coupled with a major strategic shift towards digital sovereignty. The survey reveals that 53% of companies plan to host their generative AI solutions locally, a clear response to a changing regulatory landscape.

This trend is directly fuelled by the upcoming European AI Act. The report notes that 44% of companies cite the AI Act as a motivation to act on governance—a significant 14-point increase from 2025. Despite this, as the survey data shows, only 48% of organisations have a formal policy in place, highlighting a critical readiness gap between regulatory awareness and operational reality.

How Luxembourg AI Factory addresses cost, compliance and data challenges

Luxembourg's innovation ecosystem has developed targeted responses to these interconnected hurdles. Luxembourg AI Factory is central to this effort, offering concrete solutions to the challenges identified in the survey.

To tackle the TCO barrier, the AI Initiate programme gives companies free, trial access to the national supercomputer, while the AI Cashback 80 scheme dramatically lowers infrastructure costs for scaling projects. In response to the push for sovereignty and compliance shown in the report, the AI Assessment Sandbox provides a vital environment for testing solutions against EU AI Act requirements and the Secure Processing Environment enables the analysis of sensitive data in a fully sovereign space.

By addressing the core challenges of cost, governance and data quality head-on, Luxembourg's companies can finally bridge the gap between their ambition and execution, turning the immense potential of AI into a measurable competitive advantage.

More details about Luxembourg's AI ecosystem.