<img src="https://ws.zoominfo.com/pixel/mlCt3lyDxyyMlm3NfOMl" width="1" height="1" style="display: none;"> The Path to AI-First Procurement | Ivalua

Ardent Partners Whitepaper

The Path to AI-First Procurement

Procurement teams agree that AI matters. Far fewer have stopped to ask whether their operations can actually run it. So, what does the real path to AI-First Procurement look like?

Data from 311 CPOs across 25 industries reveals a striking gap between intent and infrastructure:

  • 80%+ plan to deploy agentic AI within three years.
  • Only 11% currently have the data foundation to support it.
  • 100% of leaders are concerned about black-box AI risk, and 63% refuse to eliminate human oversight.

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Find Your Quadrant

Every procurement team is driven by two fundamental questions: How hard are you pushing toward AI and how ready are your operations to support it?

When you cross ambition with readiness, the market divides into four distinct positions. Right now, 67% of the market is crowded into a single, high-risk corner.

 

  Low AI readiness High AI readiness
High AI ambition
Overreaching
(67% of the market)
High ambition, low readiness. The crowded, highly risky corner.
AI-first
High ambition, high readiness. A select group—and the ultimate destination.
Low AI ambition
Constrained
Low on both. Not failing today, but falling behind quietly.
Underleveraged
Data foundations are built, but AI isn't switched on yet. Your fastest near-term win.

 

Written by Andrew Bartolini, Founder and CRO at Ardent Partners. Independent analysis, underwritten by Ivalua.

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