BARC research study · Free PDF
Companies are rushing toward agentic AI, but the data underneath isn't ready.
This first-of-its-kind report from a survey of 225 data leaders shows why.
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Why this research
The most expensive way to find a data problem is to build AI on top of it
As companies invest millions in the latest models, they're finding that the unmapped files underneath aren't governed and aren't ready.
The new Harnessing Unstructured Data for AI Innovation report, an independent study by BARC® research, surveyed 225 data leaders across North America and Europe to find out where unmapped files are blocking AI initiatives and what leading organizations are doing about it.
What the survey foundSource: BARC, Harnessing Unstructured Data for AI Innovation, 2026, figure 16.
Only 29% of data leaders fully know where their AI-relevant data lives.
Inside the report
Inside you'll find out:
From the report · Figure 10 · Page 20 · n=216
Top obstacles to success with managing unstructured data for AI
- Skills and training36%
- Data privacy30%
- Data quality and semantic accuracy29%#3
- Lack of automated tools or processes23%
- Regulatory concerns22%
Trusted by
- U.S. Department of War
- Veolia
- Wood
- Costain
- Macnica
- Atlan
- Collibra
- Thales
- Virtru
- Microsoft Purview
- Experian
- Carahsoft
- Vertosoft
The research is ready
Find out what's blocking AI results and what data leaders are doing about it.