From systems to co-workers: SAP’s new design for work

In Las Vegas this October, SAP drew a bold blueprint for enterprise transformation. SAP Connect 2025, its inaugural flagship event, did not simply showcase updates—it revealed a deeper strategic rewiring of enterprise applications through artificial intelligence, data fluidity, and agent-led automation.

The shift was articulated—in a clear and precise term—by Muhammad Alam, Member of the Executive Board of SAP, Product and Engineering. “We are not just embedding AI for the sake of features. We are redefining how systems support users,” he said, outlining SAP’s move to turn its software into intelligent, autonomous co-workers for the digital era.

AI is changing how work gets done. Our goal is to build software co-workers that collaborate across roles and deliver decisions with autonomy and context.

– Muhammad Alam, Member, Executive Board – SAP, Product & Engineering

That narrative ran through every announcement. At the centre was a new generation of AI assistants—Joule Agents—built to work collaboratively across enterprise roles. SAP confirmed that more than 40 of these agents will go live by mid-2026. Unlike earlier chatbots or isolated automation bots, these agents are designed with embedded context and collaborative logic.

Consider the People Manager Assistant, coordinating seamlessly with the People Intelligence Agent to highlight compensation anomalies or workforce gaps. Or the Cash Management Agent, which is slated for Q1 2026 launch and is designed to reconcile bank statements, identify cash flow imbalances, and offer corrective strategies without user intervention. These are not tools built around tasks—they are software co-workers built around roles.

SAP’s AI also now extends into border control. The International Trade Classification Agent, set to enter beta stage in December 2025, interprets export regulations and assigns accurate customs codes, thereby removing ambiguity from global trade operations.

Even procurement, which has long been dependent on human judgment, is being reimagined. A major upgrade to SAP Ariba Source-to-Pay, scheduled for release in February 2026, will introduce AI capabilities across sourcing, supplier evaluation, and risk management. The Bid Analysis Agent, for instance, evaluates supplier quotes and presents trade-offs too complex for spreadsheets to capture.

These agents do not work in isolation. Alam explained their collaborative potential across functions. “These assistants are designed not only to support role-specific functions but also to collaborate across departments, enabling enterprise-wide coordination,” Alam said.

The Data Foundation for Intelligent Apps

Behind every smart assistant lies smarter data. SAP’s long-standing challenge—unifying fragmented enterprise data—is now being addressed through SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC) Connect. As shared at the event, BDC Connect introduces secure, bidirectional, zero-copy data sharing between SAP systems and external partner platforms.

Databricks and Google Cloud are the first to enable BDC Connect, expanding SAP’s open data ecosystem. The SAP Databricks integration is already live, while the Google BigQuery integration is expected in the first half of 2026. These partnerships promise to accelerate analytics across platforms, delivering insights where they are needed without requiring data movement.

SAP Databricks, first introduced in February 2025, continues to function as a native data service within the Business Data Cloud. Now, with BDC Connect, its reach extends beyond SAP borders while maintaining data lineage and business context.

Further strengthening the intelligence layer is Joule Deep Research, launching in beta this December. The feature enables Joule to conduct research across internal SAP systems and trusted third-party sources, combining structured data with external intelligence into a single analytical narrative.

Dr Michael Ameling, President of the SAP Business Technology Platform and a Member of the Extended Board, emphasised the foundational role of data access. “We are enabling semantic access to all data within SAP applications—and beyond—with full trust, governance, and scale,” he said.

We aim to give enterprises semantic access to all their data—inside and outside SAP—while preserving trust, governance, and operational scale.

– Dr Michael Ameling, President – SAP Business Technology Platform & Member – Extended Board

Resilient Supply Chains and Smarter CX

At Connect, SAP also tackled the growing instability of supply chains. The new Supply Chain Orchestration platform connects Joule with a live knowledge graph, enabling real-time monitoring of supplier networks across multiple tiers. The system flags disruptions and autonomously recommends alternate suppliers or routes. It is SAP’s clearest signal yet that supply chain resilience is no longer reactive—it is real-time and pre-emptive.

In parallel, SAP launched SAP Engagement Cloud, a platform that uses embedded insights to personalise experiences across customers, partners, and suppliers. Drawing from live data across SAP applications, it orchestrates interactions that feel precise, rather than generic. Engagement Cloud’s aim is not just customer satisfaction, but intelligent engagement.

SAP Ariba is also being reshaped as an AI-native environment. Every stage of sourcing and spend management—from bid evaluation to supplier collaboration—is being infused with AI, analytics, and automation. This closes the loop between planning and execution.

Execution Momentum Across Key Markets

But what does all this look like on the ground? According to Emmanuel (Manos) Raptopoulos, CRO – SAP Asia Pacific, EMEA, and MEE, and Member of the Extended Board, transformation is not a future ambition—it is happening now. “Our customers are not experimenting — they are executing transformation,” he said.

Customers are already executing transformation, not experimenting. They are deploying AI-enabled processes at scale across industries and functions.

– Emmanuel (Manos) Raptopoulos, CRO – SAP Asia Pacific, EMEA & MEE, Member – Extended Board

With the strong adoption of SAP S/4HANA in the region, industries such as energy, consumer products, and manufacturing are actively rolling out SAP’s new capabilities. Raptopoulos cited the SAP Logistics Management solution, designed for regional warehouses, which integrates transportation and warehouse processes into a single operational fabric. This helps organisations extend SAP Cloud ERP to the edge of their supply chain.

Meanwhile, the SAP Business Network is gaining more intelligence. With real-time supplier insights and embedded emissions tracking, businesses can onboard suppliers more efficiently and ensure ESG compliance throughout procurement. All this is done within the core ERP system, reducing integration friction.

AI’s Expanding Role in the Talent Lifecycle

SAP’s vision for AI extends to how companies attract, manage, and retain talent. Verena Siow, Regional Business Suite Leader at SAP Asia Pacific, shared details of a series of new agents designed to support HR transformation.

Businesses want more than tools—they want a strategic partnership. AI-driven HR agents bring insight, guidance, and clarity to workforce transformation.

– Verena Siow, Regional Business Suite Leader, SAP Asia Pacific

Among them, the Payroll Agent deciphers paycheck inconsistencies using time-tracking data. The Career and Talent Development Agent assists with succession planning by aligning employee aspirations with business goals. The People Intelligence Agent connects with SAP’s Business Data Cloud to offer real-time organisational insights.

SAP also announced that the Joule Workforce Knowledge Network will include curated content from G-P and The Josh Bersin Company. This integration brings expert HR guidance directly into SAP SuccessFactors. “Customers in Asia are asking for more than software. They want a strategic partner who can guide transformation at scale,” Siow said.

In talent acquisition, SAP Fieldglass will soon use AI to match contractor skills with project demands, minimising bias and accelerating hiring.

Governance and Design Built for Scale

Every agent, assistant, and automation runs on infrastructure designed to scale with trust. SAP introduced Joule Studio, a no-code environment that lets enterprises build, customise, and govern their own agents. Supporting this is the Agent-2-Agent interoperability protocol, which enables collaborative workflows between different agents in secure environments.

“Our design goal is to build agents that are safe, governed, and truly helpful in their respective domains,” explained Dr Ameling. His comment underscored the engineering behind the agent framework—ensuring that each digital assistant functions with purpose, transparency, and operational reliability.

For enterprise-wide visibility, the AI Agent Hub within SAP LeanIX provides a single pane of glass to manage AI agents, track usage, audit actions, and ensure alignment with business goals. Similarly, to quantify success, SAP has introduced the Business AI ROI Estimator. This modelling tool enables customers to forecast AI-driven outcomes in terms of cost savings, risk reduction, and time-to-value.

In a separate session with media and analysts, Alam summed up SAP’s approach: “To thrive when volatility is the new normal, businesses need more than a patchwork of disparate best-of-breed applications. Our announcements demonstrate the power of SAP Business Suite, where AI, data and applications come together in an experience to propel smarter decisions, faster execution and scalable transformation.”

shubhendup@cybermedia.co.in

SAP hosted the author in Las Vegas to attend SAP Connect 2025.