72% of professionals now use AI

AI is boosting productivity

AI tools have officially gone mainstream. From law and finance to consulting and accounting, the professional world is undergoing a massive transformation, and the speed of adoption is staggering. What was once a niche technology for early adopters has now become a standard part of the professional toolkit. The data shows a clear and unstoppable trend: AI is not just boosting productivity; it's fundamentally changing the nature of work itself.

Recent industry reports paint a vivid picture of this revolution. According to a new survey from Intapp, a remarkable 72% of professionals are now using AI in their daily work, a massive leap from just 48% in 2024. This isn't just casual experimentation. A stunning 82% of these professionals believe the output from AI is as good as, or even better than, their own work, signaling a major shift in confidence and reliance on these powerful tools. This growing trust is translating directly into tangible benefits, with 62% of users reporting that AI is highly useful for complex tasks like synthesis, analysis, and creative brainstorming.

This widespread adoption is creating a significant productivity boom. Professionals are not just working faster; they are working smarter. With AI handling routine and time-consuming tasks, 42% of users are reinvesting their saved time into higher-value activities, such as strategic planning, client relationship building, and complex problem-solving. This shift allows professionals to focus on the uniquely human aspects of their roles, driving greater innovation and delivering more strategic value to their organizations.

However, this rapid, bottom-up adoption has created a critical tension between productivity and security. The desire to innovate is outpacing corporate policy, leading to a phenomenon known as "shadow AI." The same survey revealed that 50% of professionals have used unauthorized AI tools at work, often inputting sensitive or confidential data into public models without proper security protocols. Furthermore, an additional 23% admitted they would use unapproved AI tools if they felt it would improve their productivity, highlighting a significant disconnect between employee needs and organizational governance.

This creates a dual reality for business leaders. On one hand, the productivity gains are undeniable and essential for staying competitive. On the other, the risks associated with ungoverned AI use from data breaches to compliance violations are escalating daily. The lesson here is not to restrict AI access, but to embrace it with a clear and proactive strategy. The future belongs to firms that can successfully balance experimentation with trust, empowering their teams with the best tools while implementing robust governance frameworks to protect their most valuable assets. AI adoption is no longer optional; it's an imperative. The challenge now is to manage it wisely.

Snowflake Just Bought Its Way Into the AI Agent Race

Snowflake just announced it’s acquiring Crunchy Data. The goal: bring trusted Postgres into its AI Data Cloud to power agentic apps.

Here's what you need to know: 

• Crunchy Data is a top provider of secure, open-source Postgres tech for regulated industries.

• With this deal, Snowflake will launch “Snowflake Postgres” which is a new database built for AI agent workloads.

• Postgres is used by nearly half of all developers and is key to powering real-time, structured AI workflows.

• Snowflake wants to streamline how developers build agentic applications inside its data ecosystem.

• The move echoes Databricks’ recent acquisition of Neon; another Postgres-native AI play.

• As demand grows for autonomous AI systems, control over the database layer is becoming a strategic advantage.

• The $350B market Snowflake is chasing hinges on speed, trust, and developer convenience.

AI agents are only as good as the data they run on. By integrating Postgres natively, Snowflake isn’t just chasing AI rather it’s solidifying the foundation. This signals a new phase in the data + AI arms race: infrastructure that’s open, fast, and battle-tested is back in the spotlight.