SAP is reportedly preparing to open more AI access to customers that have not moved fully to the cloud, including some SAP ECC users, according to Bloomberg.
If confirmed at SAP Sapphire in Orlando, the move would mark a notable adjustment to SAP’s cloud-first AI strategy. It could give some legacy ERP customers a way to test SAP Business AI before completing a larger migration.
The question is how far SAP is willing to go. Expanded AI access would not remove the pressure to modernize SAP landscapes. It could, however, give some ECC customers a clearer way to test SAP AI before making larger cloud decisions.
Robert Holland, Vice President and Research Director at SAPinsider, cautioned against assuming the reported expansion will apply broadly across the ECC installed base.
He noted that SAP has consistently positioned generative AI access inside ERP around RISE with SAP, GROW with SAP, and SAP Cloud ERP contracts. “While I am sure that there is an announcement coming next week at Sapphire, I would be hesitant to make any broad assumptions about how many customers this is likely to impact,” Holland said.
The Scope of “Some” Will Matter
The most important word in the Bloomberg report is “some.” SAP has not clarified which AI tools could become available, which ECC customers may qualify, or what technical and commercial conditions would apply.
Holland pointed to SAP ERP, Private Edition, Transition Option as a useful precedent. When news of the option emerged in early 2025, market discussion centered on whether SAP was extending the maintenance deadline to 2033. The final offer proved narrower and more expensive, turning what first appeared to be a broader reprieve for SAP ECC customers into a limited program for specific, complex customer situations.
That precedent makes the wording of the Bloomberg report especially important. A limited expansion could give selected ECC customers a way to experiment with SAP AI before a larger migration. A broader program would suggest SAP is creating a more flexible bridge between legacy ERP environments and its cloud-first AI strategy.
Technical distinctions are also important. As Holland noted, “You can use SAP BTP with SAP ECC today and access AI in SAP BTP applications through SAP AI Foundation. But that’s not the same as what SAP provides to Cloud ERP customers.” The key question is whether SAP is offering something materially different from those existing paths.
A selective offer could still carry weight. Many SAP customers remain in partial, hybrid, or pre-transition states. Since SAP has not changed its broader position on generative AI access, the reported expansion may point to a narrower path that brings more customers into SAP Business AI usage. Until SAP provides more detail, customers should treat the report as a signal of possible flexibility, not a general opening of SAP Business AI across ECC.
Analysis
What This Means for ERP Insiders
Eligibility will shape the real story. SAP’s criteria could reveal whether AI access is becoming a customer-retention tool or a true modernization bridge.
SAP Could Use AI Access to Pull Customers Toward Cloud ERP
SAP has strategic reasons to create that kind of bridge. On its Q1 FY2026 earnings call, CEO Christian Klein said large-scale enterprise AI adoption remains early, while arguing that SAP’s advantage lies in process depth, business data, governance, and security.
SAP has also positioned SAP Business AI as part of its future cloud economics. The company has said AI will gradually increase the share of cloud revenue tied to consumption, even as subscription revenue remains part of the model.
A limited path for SAP ECC or non-cloud customers could support that strategy by bringing more customers into SAP Business AI earlier.
Holland said, “The goal of this reported announcement is likely to be about getting more customers consuming SAP Business AI as soon as possible, a factor that is now accelerating the move to SAP S/4HANA and SAP Cloud ERP.”
That does not necessarily point to a reversal of SAP’s cloud-first strategy. Holland said the reported offer is “also quite likely to be a short-term measure for customers that have already committed to move to SAP S/4HANA.”
If so, the announcement may function as a bridge for customers already moving toward SAP’s target ERP architecture, rather than as a broad opening for all SAP ECC customers. It could give select SAP ECC or non-cloud customers a way to begin using SAP Business AI before completing a full ERP transition.
Its significance will depend on which customers qualify, which tools are included, whether SAP Business Technology Platform or a specific technology commitment is required, and how closely the offer resembles the AI capabilities available to SAP Cloud ERP customers.
Analysis
What This Means for ERP Insiders
AI access may become migration leverage. SAP could make cloud ERP more compelling by letting ECC customers see value before they fully move.
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SAPinsider first published a version of this article on May 6, 2026.
