SAP
The Autonomous Enterprise, From May 2026
For the mission-critical processes of our customers, ‘almost right’ just isn’t good enough
The Autonomous Enterprise
SAP makes the software that runs finance, procurement, HR, supply chains, and customer service for large organisations. In May 2026 it set out the Autonomous Enterprise, with AI agents running business processes from start to finish, in three layers: Joule, which people work in, the Autonomous Suite of AI agents that carry out the processes, and the platform beneath both.
RISE with SAP customers get three Joule Assistants switched on in their first year, and SAP GROW customers get all of them when they join.
SAP set up a €100 million fund for partners who help customers deploy its AI assistants and agents.
Cloud overtook licences and support in 2023
SAP’s cloud revenue grew from €8.7 billion in 2021 to €21.0 billion in 2025, while software licences and support fell from €14.7 billion to €11.5 billion as customers moved to the cloud. For 2026 SAP expects cloud revenue of €25.8 to €26.2 billion, and the decline in support to speed up in the coming years.,,
Each rack is €1 billion of licences and support, each puff €1 billion of cloud revenue. 2021 and 2022 are as restated without Qualtrics; the 2026 outlook is at constant currencies, drawn at its midpoint.
€22.9 billion of cloud revenue already contracted
SAP’s current cloud backlog is the cloud revenue customers have already signed for over the next twelve months. At the end of June 2026 it was €22.9 billion, up 27%, or 26% at constant currencies, and SAP expects its growth to slow slightly this year. The total cloud backlog, including later years, reached €77 billion at the end of 2025.,
Growth is at actual currencies. Currency movements held it down in late 2025, when it was 25% at constant currencies.,
SAP plans for costs to grow more slowly than revenue
SAP expects total revenue growth to speed up in 2027, led by the cloud, and its operating expenses to grow at 80% to 90% of that rate, helped by using its own AI inside the company. For 2026 it expects non-IFRS operating profit of €11.8 to €12.2 billion, up from €10.4 billion, and free cash flow of about €10 billion.,
The red marks start together; the expenses mark falls further behind with every turn. Operating profit and free cash flow outlooks are for 2026, the first at constant currencies.
Say where people stay in charge.
SAP’s Autonomous Suite runs processes on its own and brings people in only at critical moments, for oversight, decisions, and supervision. We recommend that a plan built on automation says exactly where people keep control, so the teams and customers relying on it can trust it.
Buy for a named gap.
SAP made three acquisitions in a few months, and each one fills a named part of its platform: master data, data from outside SAP, and predictions on tables of figures. We recommend tying every acquisition to the part of the plan it completes.
Budget for adoption, not only the product.
Alongside the new software, SAP set up a €100 million fund for partners and built AI assistants into its RISE with SAP and SAP GROW offers. We recommend budgeting for how customers will take up a new strategy as well as for building it.
Sources
- 1. SAP SE (2026). SAP unveils the Autonomous Enterprise. Press release, 12 May 2026. news.sap.com
- 2. SAP SE (2026). Half-Year Report 2026. Form 6-K, July 2026. sec.gov
- 3. SAP SE (2026). Quarterly Statement Q2 2026. Form 6-K, 23 July 2026. sec.gov
- 4. SAP SE (2026). Quarterly Statement Q1 2026. Form 6-K, 23 April 2026. sec.gov
- 5. SAP SE (2026). Quarterly Statement Q4 2025. Form 6-K, 29 January 2026. sec.gov
- 6. SAP SE (2026). Annual Report 2025. Form 20-F, 26 February 2026. sec.gov
- 7. SAP SE (2024). Annual Report 2023. Form 20-F, 29 February 2024. sec.gov
Headwater is not connected with SAP. SAP, Joule, RISE with SAP, and SAP GROW are trade marks of SAP SE. Updated 29 September 2026.