Lack of Data Quality is a Major AI Obstacle

A new study has uncovered widespread data trust issues and the impact this distrust has on data and AI initiatives.

Precisely, a data company, released a study conducted in collaboration with the Center for Applied AI and Business Analytics at Drexel University’s LeBow College of Business. Key findings from the 2025 Outlook: Data Integrity Trends and Insights report show businesses’ most pressing challenges in achieving AI readiness.

Highlights of the report include:

• Despite 60% of organizations stating AI is a key influence on data programs, only 12% report that their data is of sufficient quality and accessibility for effective AI implementation
• 76% of organizations say data-driven decision-making is a top goal for their data programs; however, 67% still don’t completely trust the data they rely on for these decisions, up from 55% in 2023
• A lack of data governance is the primary data challenge inhibiting AI initiatives, according to 62% of organizations; this includes where data is stored, its lineage, who has access to it, whether it has personally identifiable information (PII) attributes, etc.
• 42% say a shortage of skills and resources continues to be one of their biggest challenges to data programs, up from 37% in 2023. 60% of respondents cite a lack of AI skills and training as a significant challenge in launching AI initiatives
• 64% of respondents identified data quality as their top data integrity challenge, up from 50% in 2023, and that the overall perceptions of data quality have declined
• 77% of respondents rated the quality of their data as average or worse, compared to 66% in the previous year
• The top barrier to achieving high-quality data is the lack of adequate tools for automating data quality processes, according to 49% of respondents. Inconsistent data definitions and formats (45%) and data volume (43%) are also top concerns.

Organizations are increasingly realizing the importance of robust data governance programs to offset challenges. This year, 51% of organizations identified data governance as a top challenge to data integrity, second only to data quality, marking a dramatic 89% increase from the previous year (up from 27% in 2023). 71% reported that their organization has a data governance program, compared to 60% in 2023.

Despite these challenges, there are positives. Organizations that invested in data governance programs report benefiting from improved data quality (58%), improved quality of data analytics and insights (58%), increased collaboration (57%), increased regulatory compliance (50%), and faster access to relevant data (36%).