Most large firms plan higher open-weight AI use to cap bills, study shows
QQQ•Nearly 6 in 10 senior executives at large companies plan to increase their use of cheaper open-weight AI models over the next year. A Capgemini study found AI spending was 24% above expectations or budgets on average, while open-weight tokens cost 87% less than closed ones.
1. AI budgets overshoot
Some 59% of surveyed executives said their AI spending over the past year was significantly above expectations or budgets, by 24% on average. The share worried about AI costs rose to 53%, from 45% last year.
2. Open models gain use
Open-weight models handled 72% of traffic on OpenRouter in September but represented 27% of AI spending, Capgemini said. The firm said open-weight tokens were 87% cheaper on average than closed ones.
3. Closed models remain
Half of respondents said they would retain closed models when task complexity warranted the additional cost. Capgemini surveyed 500 executives at enterprises with annual revenue above $1 billion in 10 countries.
