Salesforce’s recent move to acquire Informatica for nearly $8 billion isn’t just a bet on AI. It’s a loud, unmistakable message to the enterprise world: without connected, governed data, AI doesn’t scale, it stumbles.
This acquisition is Salesforce’s biggest bet yet on what we at Kapture have long believed: AI is only as good as the data infrastructure supporting it.
Setting the Stage: A Shift from Features to Foundations
For years, enterprise tech has been chasing “AI-first” features: smarter bots, better predictions, faster automations. But what’s becoming increasingly clear is that you can’t bolt AI onto a broken foundation.
In fact, 83% of enterprise AI failures are directly tied to poor data quality, integration, or fragmentation. Salesforce isn’t just acquiring Informatica for its data capabilities, it’s acquiring a missing piece of the AI puzzle: a platform that can clean, govern, and connect enterprise data across silos.
As Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO of Salesforce, stated, “together, Salesforce and Informatica will create the most complete, agent-ready data platform in the industry”. This move underscores Salesforce’s commitment to building a robust AI infrastructure, ensuring that AI tools are not just numerous, but fundamentally better and more integrated.
Not a One-Off: The Broader Industry Trend
Salesforce isn’t alone. Earlier this year, ServiceNow acquired Data.World, a leading metadata company. The reason? The same.
“The road to agentic AI heaven, unfortunately, for a lot of enterprises, goes through data hell.”
— Gaurav Rewari, SVP & GM of Data and Analytics Products, ServiceNow
This sentiment reflects what enterprise teams already know: getting your data AI-ready is harder than plugging in a new model. According to Gartner’s 2024 CEO survey, 87% of leaders cite AI as a strategic priority, but only 17% believe their data is ready.
The Real Problem: Disconnected Systems, Fragmented CX
In most enterprises, data still lives in silos. Teams use different tools for customer service, logistics, order management, social engagement and then struggle to stitch it together when trying to deploy automation or AI.
70% of enterprises admit that siloed data limits their AI and automation outcomes. (Salesforce)
You can’t automate what you can’t connect. You can’t personalize what you can’t unify. And you definitely can’t build scalable, responsible AI on top of incomplete, unstructured, or duplicated data.
Kapture’s Take: AI is Only as Smart as the Platform It Runs On
At Kapture, we’ve always said: AI is only as powerful as the platform and data behind it. That’s why our CX automation platform is built around a unified data layer. Everything, from WhatsApp conversations to returns to ticket resolution, lives in one place, fully connected.
Our AI doesn’t just plug into your workflow, it understands it. Because it’s been trained on data that’s real-time, cross-functional, and complete.
Final Word: Build the Infrastructure, Not Just the Interface
Salesforce and ServiceNow are signaling the same thing: the age of AI features is giving way to the age of AI foundations. And the enterprises that get serious about their data: how it’s structured, accessed, and activated, will be the ones that actually see AI deliver real ROI.
