---
title: "BARC 2026: Harnessing Unstructured Data for AI Innovation"
description: "BARC surveyed 225 data leaders: 79% are confident they can govern unstructured data for AI, 29% fully know where it lives. Download the report."
url: "https://www.dataxray.io/research/barc-2026/"
language: "en-US"
---

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4. BARC research 2026

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.

## Get the free report, sent straight to your inbox

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.

Cover of the BARC report Harnessing Unstructured Data for AI Innovation: Problems, Practices, and Principles for Success

What the survey found

Only 29% of data leaders fully know where their AI-relevant data lives.

_Source: BARC, Harnessing Unstructured Data for AI Innovation, 2026, figure 16._

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 training

  36%
- Data privacy

  30%
- **Data quality and semantic accuracy**

  29%

  #3
- Lack of automated tools or processes

  23%
- Regulatory concerns

  22%

Top 5 of 16 · Respondents picked up to three

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.

Download the report