Google Cloud Next 2025 has come and gone, in a matter of a week.

As always, my chat with Savannah and Dave on SiliconANGLE theCUBE was a highlight. We dove deep into the real news coming out of the opening keynote, and I’ve got to say, the focus on practical AI agents is what truly stands out. Let me give you top takeaways from Google Cloud Next 2025.

 

AI agents are here and working

For years, we’ve talked about the potential of AI agents. But this year feels different. Google isn’t just showing us slides, they’re showing us demonstrations of AI agents that are directly embedded into the tools we use every single day. This isn’t some abstract future state; it’s about tangible productivity and process gains we can begin using.

We’re moving beyond theoretical use cases to seeing AI actively assist with drafting emails, sifting through mountains of data with intelligent search, and even summarizing complex information at lightning speed. And, it’s not just about individual efficiency. We’re talking about fundamentally changing how our processes operate, with AI agents generating code, uncovering hidden insights in our data, and even providing new environments for application development.

The top, practical AI use cases businesses should focus on

At Pythian, we’re big on taking a practical approach. AI is about investing in the best use case for your business. The more practical and pragmatic you are in selecting your AI use case, the faster you go from proof of concept, to deployment, to results.

The top AI use cases I see coming out of Google Cloud Next are aligned with the ways we’ve helped customers achieve AI at their business. The key is to focus on what you can achieve, which use case addresses an immediate problem, and how fast it will prove ROI. The grandiose, multi-million dollar AI ideas carry such high risk that a simple proof of concept (PoC) won’t yield any real institutional value. In our AI workshop, we zero-in on five implementable use cases designed to deliver tangible ROI within weeks and achieve swift production deployment.

• Computer vision: Pythian worked with Day & Ross to build automated tasks like document processing—AI cut processing times for bills of lading, reducing drivers’ dwell times from hours to minutes.
• Code creation and conversion: AI can be a game-changer in accelerating software development and modernizing legacy systems. We helped Wayfair go from an estimation of 46 years for their cloud migration and database modernization to months.
• Enterprise search (like Agentspace): Empowering employees to find information quickly across all your systems—a huge productivity booster. With our latest service: Agentspace QuickStart, we’re helping businesses drive AI adoption faster to boost employee productivity.
• Multimodal interfaces: Creating richer and more efficient customer interactions through AI that understands voice and vision. This was an incredible demonstration at the keynote, showing how AI can help retailers personalize buyers’ experience. AI and agents can take a relatively frustrating phone call or chat experience and transform it into a five-minute buying experience because the faster you can move the customer toward the submission point of their particular transaction, the better it is for them and the company.
• Chat with your data: Unlocking insights from your vast data stores through intelligent, conversational interfaces is a massive move forward. Development teams can use natural language to generate code and data scientists can discover insights faster.

As a CIO you still face the same challenges

Despite all the exciting AI advancements, the same old challenge rears its head—data. It’s almost comical. Whether we were tackling analytics back in 2010, moving into machine learning around 2015 or now embracing AI, the fundamental problem remains—your data estate can be messy, siloed and scattered.

Get your data house in order

For CTOs and tech leaders, the first order of business hasn’t changed: get your data house in order. That means building robust data warehouses, ensuring accessibility through APIs and connectors, and implementing strong governance. Without a solid data foundation, even the smartest AI agents will stumble.

Bridge your AI skill gap

It’s not just about the technology, though. One of the biggest hurdles I see is the skills gap. We have talented application developers with years of experience in traditional systems, but they might not have the specific expertise in data engineering, machine learning, or Large Language Models (LLMs) that’s crucial for effective AI implementation.

This is where CIOs need to be strategic. It’s about investing in upskilling our teams and potentially partnering with those who have the specialized knowledge in technology, information, and the specific skillsets required to make AI successful. And, let’s not forget the change management aspect—bringing AI into an organization requires careful planning and execution to ensure adoption and minimal disruption.

Looking ahead to Google Cloud Next 2026

Widespread, practical AI adoption

Looking ahead to Google Cloud Next 2026, my hope is that we’ll be talking about the widespread adoption of tools like Agentspace. I see it as a crucial step in driving both change management and the learning needed for effective AI interaction, especially around prompting. If we can get everyone comfortable using AI-powered search to find information and gain insights, it’ll be a massive win for productivity and innovation across the board.

Ultimately, my key takeaway from this year’s Google Cloud Next is that AI is no longer a futuristic fantasy. It’s here, it’s practical, and it has the potential to revolutionize how we work. But it demands a strategic approach, a focus on our data foundations, a commitment to upskilling our teams, and a clear understanding of where we can achieve the most significant impact. I’m excited to see how these AI agents evolve, and how we at Pythian can continue to help organizations leverage them to their full potential.

https://www.pythian.com/blog/business-insights/google-cloud-next-2025-announcement-on-ai-agents?hs_amp=true