The 5% Hurdle: Why Agentic AI Isn’t Scaling

XP Ng, CEO , Academy of Artificial Intelligence

09-Feb-26 12:00

The 5% Hurdle: Why Agentic AI Isn’t Scaling

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Agentic AI promises systems that do not just generate responses, but execute real business tasks. Yet new data shows that only around 5 per cent of enterprise AI agent projects have made it into production, with most stuck in prolonged pilot phases due to poor data, siloed organisations, and unclear governance.

We examine why the gap between AI ambition and execution is widening, even as Malaysia pours billions into data centres. We explore what it really takes to manage a workforce that is part human, part algorithm, and why leadership, data readiness, and trust now matter more than the technology itself.

Produced by: Richard Bradbury, Carol Wong

Presented by: Richard Bradbury

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Categories: technology, managing, Corporates

Tags: ai ambition, ai execution, data centre, ai, governance, workforce management,

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XP Ng, CEO, Academy of Artificial Intelligence, shares about Agentic AI, how it promises systems that do not just generate responses, but execute real business tasks. Yet new data shows that only around 5 percent of enterprise AI agent projects have made it into production, with most stuck in prolonged pilot phases due to poor data, siloed organisations, and unclear governance.

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