In Q2 2026, ITSM.tools ran an Agentic AI IT service management (ITSM)-focused survey sponsored by HCL Software for a report called “The State of Agentic AI in ITSM 2026.” This article shares some survey results and details on how to download the full The State of Agentic AI in ITSM 2026 report and watch a webinar that discusses the key Agentic AI Survey findings.
Survey Overview
The Agentic AI Survey was promoted to IT service management (ITSM) professionals via social media and at the Service Desk and IT Support Show (SITS) in the UK. 256 responses were received, representing various regions, sectors, and organizations of different sizes. The respondents’ demographic details are included at the end of the report.
6 Key Findings from the Agentic AI in ITSM Survey
The Agentic AI Survey included 22 questions; the following ten results are a subset of these. A second article will also share the key correlations discovered in the Agentic AI Survey data.
1. Nearly 75% of Organizations Use AI Capabilities in Their ITSM Tools
Most ITSM tools offer AI capabilities. If you attend ITSM events, every exhibitor booth or stand calls out AI in its livery.
However, tool inclusion doesn’t mean capabilities are being used. The survey found that nearly three-quarters of the survey respondent organizations were using their ITSM tools’ AI capabilities to some extent.
2. AI Is Delivering Measurable ITSM Efficiency Improvements
Nearly all Agentic AI in ITSM survey respondents who were in a position to rate their success reported ITSM efficiency improvements from AI use.
48% felt that AI had improved their organization’s ITSM efficiency, versus 3% who didn’t. If only these figures are used to create “the whole,” this is 94% versus 6%.
3. Agentic AI Adoption Continues to Grow
AI use in ITSM was still mostly assistive, but the Agentic AI Survey found that Agentic AI adoption is growing, with the primary uptake methods as follows:
- Partially autonomous in limited ITSM processes (15%)
- Largely autonomous across multiple ITSM processes (6%).
The uptake of AI and autonomous AI agents in particular is reliant on trust (from various parties), which is also covered in The State of Agentic AI in ITSM 2026 report.
4. Service Desk Operations Lead Agentic AI Use Cases
The top three employed Agentic AI use cases were:
- Autonomous incident triage and resolution (18%)
- Autonomous knowledge creation and continuous improvement (18%)
- End-to-end automated service request fulfillment (13%).
5. Data Quality and Governance Remain Major Adoption Barriers
The top three barriers to Agentic AI adoption in ITSM were:
- Poor data quality (32%)
- Risk, governance, or compliance concerns around autonomous actions (30%)
- Lack of internal skills to deploy and manage Agentic AI (24%).
6. Half of Organizations Plan to Advance Toward Agentic AI in the Next 12 Months
Half of organizations plan to progress from assistive to Agentic AI in the next 12 months.
Although this will be a gradual evolution from assistive AI capabilities for three-fifths of these organizations, versus those actively prioritizing Agentic AI.
Watch the Webinar and Access the Full 2026 Report
The full results from this Agentic AI Survey will be available soon. If you want to get access to them as quickly as possible, a HCL Software webinar on 17 June 2026 will not only talk through some of the key findings but also provide early access to the report.
Registration details for the Agentic AI in ITSM webinar: https://www.linkedin.com/events/7465026039455531011/?viewAsMember=true
Agentic AI in ITSM FAQs
It’s a research report based on a 256-response survey of IT service management professionals, covering how organizations are currently using AI in their ITSM tools, where agentic AI adoption stands, and what’s slowing it down. The survey was sponsored by HCL Software and promoted via social media and at the Service Desk and IT Support Show (SITS) in the UK.
Nearly three-quarters of survey respondents reported using their ITSM tools’ AI capabilities to some extent.
Among respondents able to rate their results, 48% reported efficiency improvements versus 3% who didn’t. Taken as a proportion of those with a view, that’s 94% reporting improvement.
The top three are autonomous incident triage and resolution (18%), autonomous knowledge creation and continuous improvement (18%), and end-to-end automated service request fulfillment (13%).
The three most cited barriers are poor data quality (32%), risk, governance, or compliance concerns around autonomous actions (30%), and a lack of internal skills to deploy and manage agentic AI (24%).
Half of survey respondents plan to progress from assistive to agentic AI in the next 12 months, though for three-fifths of those it will be a gradual evolution rather than an active priority.
An HCL Software webinar on 17 June 2026 will cover the key findings and provide early access to the full report. Registration details are at the LinkedIn event page linked in the article.
Stephen Mann
Principal Analyst and Content Director at the ITSM-focused industry analyst firm ITSM.tools. Also an independent IT and IT service management marketing content creator, and a frequent blogger, writer, and presenter on the challenges and opportunities for IT service management professionals.
Previously held positions in IT research and analysis (at IT industry analyst firms Ovum and Forrester and the UK Post Office), IT service management consultancy, enterprise IT service desk and IT service management, IT asset management, innovation and creativity facilitation, project management, finance consultancy, internal audit, and product marketing for a SaaS IT service management technology vendor.
