Accenture comes in ahead of Deloitte, Wipro and TCS in IDC’s AI rankings

• Accenture is ranked number one artificial intelligence (AI) service provider by the International Data Corporation (IDC).
• Booz Allen and Oracle were left out of IDC’s analysis for not meeting the requisite criteria. Capgemini did not participate in the study.
• IDC attributes Accenture’s market leadership to its efficiency in synergizing the different tools that it has at its disposal.

Accenture is the top ranked artificial intelligence (AI) service provider globally, according to International Data Corporation (IDC). It toppled Indian IT giants like TCS and Wipro along with consulting firm Deloitte.


The rankings published by IDC classifies AI service providers into market leaders and major players based on their capabilities and strategies. While six companies fall above the line — Accenture, Deloitte, HCL, IBM, Wipro and Cognizant — others like TCS, Infosys and EY have some catching up to do.


Tailored AI solutions

The report highlights how Accenture has been deemed a market leader based on its ‘unique approach’ to apply its expertise using AI, analytics and automation at scale — ranging from strategy to managed services.

Basically, Accenture knows how to capitalize on its synergies and is good at tailoring AI solutions according to a client’s needs.

In India, Accenture had to retrain 17,000 of its employees because of the same reason.

According to Jennifer Hamel, a research manager at IDC, “As the AI services market continues to mature, customers will need partners that not only demonstrate expertise in AI-enabling technologies but also develop solutions that achieve customers' business objectives and address the human impacts of AI adoption.”

Nonetheless, IDC believes that there’s room for improvement. Accenture’s sales and distribution could use a digital route that allows consumers purchase AI services online, according to the Chinese market intelligence company.This could lead to further growth for Accenture by targeting the non-traditional customer base.

Missing players

The report took 12 companies into account but curiously, large companies like Capgemini, Microsoft, Oracle, and SAP SE were missing from the list.

As per IDC’s methodology, only vendors with at least 10% revenue and 10% head count in each macro-region were included. But, the term macroregions is specific to IDC’s parameters.

Booz Allen, among the top 10 AI service providers in the US, was also left off the list as most of its revenue comes from the US government. Hence, its revenue stream isn’t global enough for the company to qualify for IDC’s analysis.

Capgemini did not participate in the study, but is looking to inch closer to Accenture. Earlier this week, the global IT firm announced plans of acquiring Altran Technologies for $4.1 billion.

The aim of this acquisition is to woo more tech clients. That, in turn, will help Capgemini keep up with Accenture, who generates most of its revenue and sales from digital projects.

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