Nutanix, a leader in hybrid multicloud computing, has announced the UK findings of its seventh annual Enterprise Cloud Index (ECI) survey and research report, which surveyed the state of global enterprise cloud adoption alongside focussing on application containerisation trends and Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) adoption. Figures specifically from UK organisations reveal that more than 90% are at least in the process of containerising their applications, and 91% state they are leveraging GenAI today. 

Furthermore, UK organisations are embracing containerisation at pace, with 32% already ensuring all newly developed applications are containerised and are outpacing the global average of 27%. This is significant, as containerisation is the foundation of modern, scalable, and efficient cloud-native application development. By embracing containers at pace, UK organisations are positioning themselves for greater agility, portability, and automation.

However, a significant skills gap threatens to slow progress, with only 42% of IT leaders confident in their teams’ ability to support cloud-native adoption. To bridge this gap, UK businesses are prioritising skills investment, with 59% actively hiring for container and cloud-native expertise. This focus on talent development will be critical in sustaining momentum and ensuring containerised applications move seamlessly from development to production.

“The UK is at a pivotal moment in its GenAI adoption journey. While organisations are eager to leverage AI-driven productivity and automation, security, integration with existing infrastructure, and skills shortages continue to slow progress,” says James Sturrock, Director of Systems Engineering, Nutanix. “The findings from this year’s ECI highlight the need for a strategic approach that ensures secure, scalable, and well-governed AI implementations. A hybrid multicloud foundation and strong data security and governance frameworks will be critical in moving from early experimentation to real-world impact.”

Comparison to Global Markets

The UK is keeping pace with global counterparts in GenAI adoption, with 91% of organisations already leveraging the technology. However, true maturity remains elusive as 37% of UK respondents are reportedly still in the early stages of developing a GenAI strategy, compared to just 13% globally and 15% in EMEA. This approach reflects real-world concerns as UK decision-makers navigate key roadblocks that stand in the way of scaling GenAI from pilot to production. Security, compliance, and IT infrastructure readiness remain pressing issues, while a lack of in-house expertise further complicates progress. 

Overcoming these hurdles requires a deliberate shift, including investing in GenAI-ready infrastructure, proactively addressing security concerns, and bridging the skills gap through targeted hiring and training. With 72% of UK organisations expecting positive ROI from GenAI projects in the next three years, the focus must shift from experimentation to execution.

Other key findings in the 2025 report include:

• Cloud-native momentum is growing – Because of infrastructure gaps, UK organisations are prioritising investment in modernising IT environments to fully support cloud-native applications and containers, ensuring long-term scalability and efficiency.

• Kubernetes adoption lags –While multi-environment deployment is standard across EMEA (76%), only 60% of UK respondents report using more than one environment, with 7% not using Kubernetes at all-higher than the EMEA average of 1%.

• Security is a top priority – With 86% of UK organisations acknowledging room for improvement in securing GenAI models, there is clear intent to enhance data protection and governance, laying the groundwork for trusted AI adoption.

• Compliance drives smarter adoption – Regulatory and compliance hurdles remain a challenge for UK organisations, with 46% citing these concerns as a key factor in scaling GenAI workloads from development to production.

• Breaking down data silos – Recognising that 62% of UK organisations face challenges with siloed data, there is a growing focus on integrated, hybrid multicloud strategies that enable seamless data access and AI-driven insights.

• Optimism on GenAI business impact – UK organisations rank productivity (72%) and automation/efficiency (63%) as the top business goals driving GenAI adoption.

• Cybersecurity is a top priority – The most critical area for GenAI-related investment over the next 1-3 years is cybersecurity, followed by IT training and infrastructure.

“As UK enterprises accelerate their cloud-native transformation, containerisation is becoming the backbone of modern application development. However, gaps in Kubernetes adoption and persistent data silos indicate that many organisations are still struggling to operationalise these technologies at scale. To fully harness the potential of cloud-native and AI workloads, businesses need a consistent, hybrid multicloud operating model that simplifies deployment, enhances security and ensures workload portability across environments,” said Sturrock.

Profound Shift in Enterprise IT

These findings highlight a UK market that is eager to capitalise on the potential of GenAI and cloud-native applications but faces fundamental challenges in skills, security, and infrastructure readiness. The widespread use of containers and Kubernetes signals progress, yet the fragmented approach to deployment—combined with persistent data silos—suggests organisations are still grappling with how to manage and scale these environments efficiently. 

Similarly, while UK enterprises are optimistic about GenAI’s business impact, security and compliance concerns continue to slow adoption, making it clear that a solid cloud foundation is crucial for success.

To bridge these gaps, organisations must take a strategic approach to modernisation, starting with a resilient hybrid multicloud infrastructure that enables secure, scalable, and efficient operations. A unified cloud operating model can break down data silos, enhance governance, and streamline workload portability across on-premises, public, and private clouds. At the same time, investment in AI-ready infrastructure, security, and upskilling initiatives will be essential to turning today’s cautious experimentation into enterprise-wide GenAI success.

Background

For the seventh consecutive year, Nutanix commissioned a global research study to learn about the state of global enterprise cloud deployments, application containerization trends, and GenAI application adoption. In the Fall of 2024, U.K. researcher Vanson Bourne surveyed 1,500 IT and DevOps/Platform Engineering decision-makers around the world. The respondent base spanned multiple industries, business sizes, and geographies, including North and South America; Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA); and Asia-Pacific-Japan (APJ) region.

To learn more about the report and findings, please download the full seventh Nutanix Enterprise Cloud Index, here.