Key facts
- IBM said 94% of surveyed enterprises faced at least one sovereignty challenge in the last three years.
- IBM said 81% of affected enterprises had to provide formal evidence of control to regulators, customers, auditors or internal stakeholders.
- AI-related issues were the most common sovereignty challenge at 44%, IBM said, ahead of data-access issues and government restrictions.
- IBM said 82% of respondents were very or extremely confident they could prove control, but only 26% reached its top tier.
- Only 33% of enterprises regularly test their ability to demonstrate sovereignty, IBM said.
IBM said on November 11, 2026 that British businesses are falling behind on AI governance as AI adoption outpaces compliance controls. The company's Digital Sovereignty Index report surveyed enterprises on their ability to retain and prove control over AI, technology, operations and data.
According to IBM, 94% of surveyed enterprises faced at least one sovereignty challenge in the last three years, including AI-provider failures, regulatory conflicts, critical vendor disruption, government restrictions such as export controls, or data-access issues. Among those affected, 81% had to provide formal evidence to regulators, customers, auditors or internal stakeholders.
AI-related issues, including incorrect outputs, explainability problems, model or provider failures and governance concerns, were the most frequently reported sovereignty challenge at 44%, IBM said. That was ahead of data-access issues, government restrictions and formal audits.
IBM said an average of 82% of respondents were very or extremely confident they could provide evidence of sovereign control, but only 26% of enterprises reached the Index's Leading Digital Sovereignty tier, and just 33% regularly test their capabilities. Only a third of respondents test their ability to demonstrate sovereignty continuously or as part of regular governance and assurance processes.
Jonathan Adashek, IBM Senior Vice President and Chief Global Affairs Officer, said in a statement: "Sovereignty should expand future choices, not restrict them. When a business issue turns into a sovereignty risk, boards need to show real control."