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an architect is mapping an integration flow in SAP Integration Suite, they are doing so with direct access to trusted, real-time enterprise context. The AI-Native Foundation You cannot discuss enterprise tech- nology in 2026 without addressing the elephant in the room: Artificial Intel- ligence. Over the last two years, or- ganizations have moved beyond the hype cycle of basic generative AI and entered the era of Agentic AI which pro- vides autonomous systems capable of executing complex business workflows. For SAP customers, deploying AI safely, securely, and with full business context is paramount. Once again, SAP BTP is the conduit through which this technological leap is made possible. It is the governance layer, the orchestration engine, and the
“Whether customers are using SAP Business AI capabilities that we ship as part of our SAP Business Suite, or whether they build their own AI sce- narios and intelligent agents using the SAP BTP AI services and SAP Build, SAP BTP is at the heart of what they do,” Pi- etsch affirms. By centralizing AI development on BTP, organizations ensure that their AI models are grounded in the rich, se- mantic data provided by SAP systems. It prevents the hallucinations and context- loss that plague generic, standalone AI deployments, ensuring that enterprise AI is genuinely enterprise-grade. Charting Your Course for 2026 and Beyond As SAPinsiders look at their project roadmaps for the year ahead, the mes- sage is clear: piecemeal IT strategies
the introduction of SAP Business Data Cloud, a comprehensive unified data foundation,” Pietsch remarks, high- lighting the evolution of SAP’s data philosophy. “Going forward, SAP BTP will continue to serve as a technology platform for all business applications and will be used to extend and inte- grate applications across the entire IT landscape.” The relationship between SAP BTP and SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC) is symbiotic, creating a seamless loop of insight and action. SAP BDC acts as the semantic layer that harmonizes and democratizes enterprise data, while SAP BTP provides the development and integration tools necessary to put that data to work. Pietsch details this powerful bidi- rectional relationship: “SAP BDC is the evolution of SAP’s data and analytics
The relationship between SAP BTP and SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC) is symbiotic, creating a seamless loop of insight and action.
strategy by providing a powerful unified data foundation. SAP BTP benefits from SAP BDC by consuming data products, for example those produced by source systems like SAP S/4HANA, available via SAP BDC to enrich and enhance ap- plication development and integration scenarios.” But the platform doesn’t just con- sume data; it actively generates crucial operational intelligence that feeds back into the business’s broader analytical framework. “To enable new use cases BTP services will define and expose technical data products with techni- cal information like logs and statistics to SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC) as well,” adds Pietsch. This robust data orchestration en- sures that whether a developer is build- ing a new application in SAP Build or
development hub for the AI-driven en- terprise. “SAP BTP is the foundation for eve- rything AI at SAP,” Pietsch states defini- tively. “The AI capabilities in SAP BTP provide the building blocks to build new AI scenarios, AI agents, or custom- ized embedded AI copilots into busi- ness applications.” This flexibility is crucial. SAP recog- nizes that customers have varying appe- tites and capabilities when it comes to AI. Some organizations want ready-to- use, embedded intelligence that works out of the box with their HR, finance, or supply chain solutions. Others want to leverage large language models to build highly specialized, custom agents that execute proprietary workflows. SAP BTP accommodates both ends of the spec- trum.
will no longer suffice. The intercon- nected demands of cloud migration, data democratization, and AI deploy- ment require a unified approach. SAP Business Technology Platform is not just a line item on an enterprise architecture diagram; it is the nervous system of the modern SAP landscape. By embracing SAP BTP as the default standard for integration, side-by-side extensibility, and AI innovation, busi- nesses can finally break free from legacy technical debt. They can keep their ERP core pristine while accelerating the de- livery of high-value, intelligent applica- tions. As Steffen Pietsch’s insights reveal, the foundation has been built. The tools are ready. For the SAP customer ecosys- tem in 2026, the mandate is simply to build the future upon it.
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