Emburse’s AI Spending Paradox report reveals the hidden costs of unchecked AI enthusiasm
Emburse, the company defining Expense Intelligence through AI-powered travel and spend orchestration, released new data that shows UK business leaders are exploiting the increased adoption of AI to streamline procurement and get their software purchases approved. In a survey of 500 corporate decision makers in the UK, 61% said it’s easier to approve the purchase of AI tools compared to non-AI tools, while 68% admit to framing purchases as AI initiatives to secure funding.
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In a survey of 500 corporate decision makers in the UK, 61% said it’s easier to approve the purchase of AI tools compared to non-AI tools, while 68% admit to framing purchases as AI initiatives to secure funding.
The new report, The AI Spending Paradox, reveals how the pressure to appear “AI-ready” is impacting tightening budgets and vendor consolidation across companies of all sizes. 61% of UK business leaders report being instructed to reduce their number of vendors, cut total spend, or both. 88% are being pushed by leadership, IT, or procurement to use specific vendors.
Business leaders report strong discipline in SaaS spending decisions:
- 96% of UK business leaders look at their team’s usage data when making software renewal decisions.
- 79% report that senior leaders in their company often or always make software purchasing and vendor consolidation decisions together.
- 95% say that their company has a corporate contract or corporate rate with its vendors.
Yet, when it comes to AI adoption, these best practices often fall short. The mandate to keep budgets tight while maintaining an appearance of AI readiness, has created a loophole for employees to adopt or keep tools by framing them as AI, even when they are not.
“Tying tech spend to AI initiatives might seem like an effective way to get around tightening budgets, but it won’t last,” said Marne Martin, CEO of Emburse. “Organisations are already becoming more selective about their AI investments, and by 2026, we expect the same level of scrutiny to be applied to AI tools as with any other software purchase. Given the variability of AI costs and the prevalence of consumption-based pricing models, leaders will need greater visibility into who’s spending what, where, and why.”
The AI Spending Paradox report also explores how decision-making power has shifted inside organizations, which criteria drive spending decisions, and how leaders can regain control in the vendor selection process.
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