
Software Engineering Institute (SEI) Podcast Series Maturing AI Adoption: From Chaos to Consistency
Mar 2, 2026
Ipek Ozkaya, technical director for AI-native software engineering at SEI, leads research on AI adoption and modernization. She discusses why AI investments often fail, how an AI adoption maturity model provides a roadmap, assessing fit-for-purpose AI and reengineering workflows, and measuring adoption and ROI beyond simple usage metrics.
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Widespread AI Adoption Meets Limited Returns
- AI is becoming embedded in everyday digital life but many organizations see no ROI from generative AI investments.
- Ipek Ozkaya and Matthew Butkovic cite Stanford, Gartner, and MIT findings showing rising adoption yet widespread disillusionment and zero returns.
FOMO Drives Poorly Justified AI Projects
- Fear of missing out drives many organizations to adopt AI without clear problem-fit or strategy.
- Ipek Ozkaya warns this rush often skips asking why AI is needed and what problem it's actually solving.
Codify Practices Before Scaling AI
- Codify repeatable practices before scaling AI adoption to create predictable outcomes.
- Ozkaya emphasizes building on software engineering maturity lessons: establish consistent processes, not just tooling, to avoid chaos.

