GitLab Inc has released its 2025 executive research report, The Economics of Software Innovation: AUD$6B Opportunity at a Crossroads. Conducted by The Harris Poll, the study surveyed 259 C-level executives in Australia on the role of software innovation* in business success.
“AI-fuelled software innovation is an undeniable source of competitive advantage and economic impact, with 89% of executives in Australia saying that it’s now a core business priority,” said Craig Nielsen (pictured), vice president of Asia Pacific & Japan at GitLab. “The companies pulling ahead are the ones blending AI with human expertise, leveraging agentic AI with intention, aligning software strategy with business value, and building guardrails to innovate responsibly. With AUD$4 billion per year in potential value at stake, the organisations that optimise this human-AI partnership today will define the future of software tomorrow.”
Executives in Australia recognise that AI-enhanced software innovation is driving a significant economic shift, serving as a key driver of business growth and expansion. However, while AI adoption is delivering measurable ROI and increased productivity, the report also surfaces tensions around skills gaps, human-machine collaboration, and the need for formal governance of agentic AI.
Additionally, while leaders aspire to achieve optimal productivity through a 50/50 human-AI partnership, the current reality reveals that humans handle three-quarters of the work, and AI contributes just one-quarter. This disconnect exists alongside persistent concerns about job displacement, the perceived complexity of AI systems, and cybersecurity.
Report themes:
AI-powered software innovation emerges as the new economic growth engine, unlocking billions in value
- Executives surveyed in Australia report saving an average of AUD$$31,223 per developer annually from AI investments, translating to AUD$5.77 billion in potential economic value when applied to Australia’s 185,000 developers¹.
- 89% report that software innovation is now a core business priority.
- 59% report that their organisation has experienced improved customer experience tied to software innovation efforts over the last 12 months.
- They estimate a 34% increase in revenue and a 40% increase in developer productivity due to the use of AI.
Agentic AI takes off, but execs say security and trust must catch up
- 90% of executives expect agentic AI to become the industry standard for software development within three years.
- Topping the list of concerns around the adoption of agentic AI are data privacy and security (52%), cybersecurity threats (42%), and maintaining governance (41%).
- 53% are implementing regulatory-aligned governance frameworks.
- 46% are creating AI ethics committees, while 44% are using third-party audits.
Talent gaps threaten the human edge in the age of AI, making upskilling an imperative
- 99% of executives say human contributions are valuable for software development.
- 91% express that businesses should prioritise training employees to work alongside agentic AI to address skill gaps.
- 76% believe that human input for human-AI partnership should be at least 50/50, with only 24% believing that AI should do the majority of the work.
- Strategic vision (40%) and creativity (39%) rank as the most valued human contributions to software development.
AI is a boardroom priority as software innovation proves its bottom-line impact
- 93% of executives say their board is bought into the benefits of software innovation.
- 84% report willingness to invest over half of their company’s annual IT budget to prioritise software innovation.
- 88% have adopted frameworks linking software development activities to key business outcomes.
- The most common metrics used today to measure software innovation success are increased business growth (37%), enhanced developer productivity (37%), and enhanced customer experience (35%).
You can read the full report here.
