Jan Gilg, chief revenue officer & president of SAP Americas and global business suite discusses how SAP's AI-first strategy weaves artificial intelligence throughout its Business Suite and turns productivity gains into measurable business growth.

1. First things first: What is SAP's mission and how does AI currently fit into that?

What you need to know: SAP's vision is to bring out the best in every business. The goal is to connect AI, data and applications to help businesses transform and thrive in a fast-changing world. AI isn't just a buzzword. It's woven into the fabric of the SAP Business Suite.

Think of Joule, SAP's AI assistant, as your business sidekick: it's designed to work with you, not just for you, making customers more productive in ways that make a difference in growing their businesses.

2. In other words: How has SAP's use of AI improved customer experience and how will the updates to the SAP Business Suite further that?

SAP's AI is making customer experiences more personal and seamless.

An example: SAP Engagement Cloud uses real business context to tailor every interaction, whether you're talking to a customer, supplier or partner.

Retailers love SAP Customer Loyalty Management, which helps them run loyalty programs and keeps customers coming back. With the new Joule Agents, tasks like sales, service and HR are getting automated, freeing up teams to focus on what matters most in growing their businesses.

The impact: Cirque du Soleil cut their response time from 30 minutes to just two minutes using SAP Business AI.

3. Plus, plus, plus: What differentiates the Joule assistants from competitors?

Joule isn't just another assistant. It's role-based and context-aware. That means it understands your job and the business process you're working on, so you get help that's relevant.

Unlike some competitors, Joule orchestrates multiple agents behind the scenes, so you don't have to figure out which tool to use. It's part of SAP's focus on delivering real business outcomes, not piling on features.

4. The impact: With the launch of BDC Connect, how is SAP ensuring it truly breaks down silos rather than just shifting them into new ecosystems like Databricks and Google Cloud?

SAP's Business Data Cloud Connect (BDC Connect) is all about making data flow freely without the headaches of duplication or security risks. With zero-copy sharing, your SAP data stays secure but is instantly accessible in platforms like Databricks and Google Cloud.

Fewer silos, simpler data pipelines and trusted data products wherever you need them. It's about connecting so you can really solve problems instead of moving the problem around.

5. Why now: For the new enterprise applications being rolled out, is the goal eventually to replace current SAP modules, or for these to coexist as premium, next-generation offerings?

The current SAP modules won't disappear overnight. The new apps are designed to coexist as premium, next-gen offerings. SAP is modernizing classics like Ariba and SuccessFactors with embedded AI, so you can adopt new innovations at your own pace while keeping what works for you.

6. Why it's important: How do these AI innovations to the Business Suite fit into SAP's overall AI strategy?

SAP's AI strategy is simple: AI-First, Suite-First. That means embedding AI everywhere, across every line of business, every application and every workflow.

The goal: To turn data into action, automate the routine and give you insights that drive real value and business growth.

7. Before we get started: What prerequisites do customers need before being able to adopt these tools — and how do they get there?

To get the most out of SAP's new AI features and Joule Agents, you'll want to be on SAP's Cloud platforms like SAP Business Technology Platform or SAP Cloud ERP.

SAP knows big transitions take time, so there are options like the ERP private edition to help large customers migrate at their own speed. Integration is getting easier, so you can start benefiting from AI without a massive overhaul.

8. Key numbers: What early results from the testing and implementation process have you seen these Business Suite innovations have for customers?

The numbers speak for themselves. Customers are seeing up to 50% faster candidate sourcing with SAP Fieldglass, better customer experiences, and quicker decision-making.

More than 34,000 organizations are already using SAP Business AI, and the feedback is overwhelmingly positive — automation, productivity and real business impact. With Business AI innovations, the goal to drive productivity gains of up to 30 percent for our customers is on track.

9. More info: Does the rollout of these new Business Suite products mark a transition for SAP as repositioning itself from an ERP company to a business AI platform? And, how will this shift affect how customers buy, implement and measure SAP products?

SAP is moving above and beyond just ERP to also become a true business AI platform. This means customers will buy integrated solutions that combine data, AI and applications.

The focus shifts to measuring success in the business outcomes we make possible for customers. Implementation is all about automation and intelligence, making it easier to get up and running and see business results much faster.

10. Looking ahead: What's the long-term roadmap for unifying SAP's multiple clouds and suites under this "connected business" theme? Will this lead to a single integrated offering, or continue as interoperable but separate products?

SAP's vision is all about connection. The roadmap is to help customers become more productive through the power of the connected SAP Business Suite that is data-driven and AI-powered with deeper integration and interoperability. While some products may stay distinct for specific needs, the goal is seamless connectivity, unified data and AI-driven insights across the enterprise.

The takeaway: It's about making everything work together, so you get the full power of SAP to drive business outcomes wherever you are.

Learn more about SAP's strategy.