Key takeaways:
- Gartner projects a 7.9% increase in worldwide IT spending in 2025, reaching $5.43 trillion.
- AI infrastructure, especially data center systems, is leading growth, even as software and IT services slow.
- 62% of executives see AI as the defining force in competitive strategy for the next decade.
Global information technology (IT) spending is projected to total $5.43 trillion in 2025, an increase of 7.9% over 2024, according to the latest forecast from research firm Gartner.
The gains come amid what the firm calls an “uncertainty pause” — a strategic slowdown in new technology investments triggered by growing economic and geopolitical instability.
“While there is a business pause on net-new spending due to a spike in global uncertainty, the effect is subsumed by ongoing AI and generative AI (GenAI) digitization initiatives,” said John-David Lovelock, Distinguished VP Analyst at Gartner.
Data center surge
Spending growth is being led by investment in AI-related infrastructure. Gartner forecasts spending on data center systems to jump by more than 42% in 2025 — up from an already steep 40% gain in 2024 — driven by demand for AI-optimized servers and high-performance computing.
By contrast, growth in traditional IT categories like software and services is expected to decelerate, as CIOs delay some new projects and focus more on plug-and-play GenAI capabilities from incumbent vendors.
“Data centers are experiencing a surge driven by GenAI,” Lovelock added. “Spending on AI-optimized servers, which was virtually nonexistent in 2021, is expected to triple that of traditional servers by 2027.”
According to a Gartner survey of 252 senior leaders at large enterprises across North America and Western Europe, 62% believe AI will define the future of competition over the next decade. Meanwhile, 64% cited competitiveness as the top driver of technology and business transformation in the current high-pressure environment.
However, the broader economic picture is tempering outlooks. The survey also found that while 61% of enterprises began 2025 in a stronger position than the previous year, just 24% expect to end the year ahead of their 2025 business plans. The second quarter of the year saw a marked pause in new IT commitments, as organizations chose to delay spending rather than slash budgets. Hardware and infrastructure are most affected due to price volatility and ongoing supply chain disruptions.
“This pause does not stem from budget cuts,” Lovelock noted. “Rather, it is a strategic decision to delay new expenditures. In contrast, recurring IT spending—particularly for cloud and managed services—continues to show resilience.”
Challenges, threats
Business leaders cited economic shocks (41%) and geopolitical risk (32%) as the top threats to performance in the year ahead. Despite these pressures, most executives remain confident in their ability to navigate challenges from customers, competitors, and regulators.
Gartner’s IT spending forecast is based on detailed analysis of sales data from over 1,000 technology vendors across all major IT segments. The full results are available to Gartner clients in the Gartner Market Databook, 2Q25 Update.
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