Gartner: 70% of enterprises will abandon vendor-built agentic AI by 2028

Gartner predicts that by 2028, 70 percent of enterprises will abandon agentic AI systems built with vendor assistance, as costs climb and customers struggle to modify the technology without outside help. The forecast concerns forward-deployed engineering (FDE), a model in which vendor engineers work with a customer to build and deploy software for its specific requirements.

Why FDE engagements stall

Gartner argues the model can deliver rapid early progress while leaving the customer dependent on expensive outside expertise. FDE engagements often fail structurally before they fail technically: customers do not acquire the knowledge and control needed to maintain and develop the resulting systems after the vendor leaves.

Customers may also see faster early progress without building the internal capability to take control, then keep paying premium rates for work a traditional services or partner model could deliver more cost-effectively once the scope is clear.

Scope, ownership and an exit plan from day one

"FDE success starts with getting the engagement structure right, from scope and incentives to governance, ownership, and exit," said Gartner senior director analyst Mukul Saha. "The best-scoped FDE engagements have clear guidelines on governance, business value delivery, IP ownership, project co-ownership, knowledge transfer, and an exit strategy from day one."

Gartner lays out three phases. Before signing, leaders should reserve FDE for problems needing deep product expertise or close integration with the operating environment, and appoint an executive sponsor accountable for business outcomes. During the engagement, vendor engineers should work alongside internal experts, engineers and end users so knowledge is shared. At exit, the plan agreed at the start should be executed, not extended because internal teams are not ready.

Saha added that success is measured "not by implementation completion, but by the enterprise's ability to manage, optimize, and scale the technology."

"FDE washing" and earlier warnings

Gartner also predicts that through 2028 fewer than 20 percent of FDE engagements will turn recurring customer requirements into features in the vendor's core product. It warns of "FDE washing," in which conventional consulting is marketed as something more specialized, and notes that many providers use "forward deployed" as a label for implementation, professional services or AI consulting, some charging premium fees without the delivery depth to justify them.

The prediction follows earlier Gartner warnings: at least half of generative AI projects were forecast to exceed their budgets, 40 percent of AI agent deployments to be scaled back or dropped, and nearly a third of employees laid off because of AI to be rehired.