Gartner predicted on September 29, 2026, that 70% of companies will abandon agentic AI built through vendors’ Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) by 2028. It cited rising deployment and operating costs, along with companies’ inability to continue improving the systems themselves after deployment.

FDE is an approach in which a vendor’s engineers work directly with customers to build and deploy solutions. Gartner says success should be judged not only by whether deployment is complete, but also by whether a company can continue operating, optimizing and scaling the system on its own. Mukul Saha, a senior director analyst at Gartner, said contracts should clearly define knowledge transfer, intellectual property ownership and handover after vendor support ends.

Gartner recommends limiting FDE to problems that require deep product expertise, rapid adaptation or close integration with a customer’s environment. Before signing, companies should specify deliverables and handover conditions, including knowledge transfer, intellectual property rights and responsibilities when support ends. During development, vendor engineers should work with internal business specialists, engineers and users, while teams regularly assess business value as well as technical performance. Human oversight and decision-making authority should also be checked.

When support ends, companies should carry out the exit plan agreed at the start and avoid repeatedly extending support because internal teams are unprepared. They need to be ready to operate and improve the system themselves. Gartner also warned that some vendors may label conventional implementation support or consulting as FDE and charge prices that do not match the work. It predicts that fewer than 20% of FDE projects through 2028 will incorporate recurring customer needs into vendors’ core product features, and says the risk of “FDE washing”—selling consulting as FDE—is growing. These are Gartner’s predictions and assessment.

The central challenge is preparing for independence after deployment at the contracting, development and support exit stages. Gartner urges companies to set knowledge transfer and handover terms in contracts, involve internal stakeholders throughout development, and confirm at the end that they can operate and improve systems themselves. Its 70% abandonment forecast for 2028 reflects the risk of companies remaining unable to operate independently while vendor support continues to be extended. The forecast that fewer than 20% of projects will feed customer needs into vendors’ core products points to another concern.

Gartner predicted on September 29, 2026, that 70% of companies will abandon agentic AI built through vendors’ Forward Deployed Engineering (FDE) by 2028. It cited rising deployment and operating costs, along with companies’ inability to continue improving the systems themselves after deployment.

FDE is an approach in which a vendor’s engineers work directly with customers to build and deploy solutions. Gartner says success should be judged not only by whether deployment is complete, but also by whether a company can continue operating, optimizing and scaling the system on its own. Mukul Saha, a senior director analyst at Gartner, said contracts should clearly define knowledge transfer, intellectual property ownership and handover after vendor support ends.

Gartner recommends limiting FDE to problems that require deep product expertise, rapid adaptation or close integration with a customer’s environment. Before signing, companies should specify deliverables and handover conditions, including knowledge transfer, intellectual property rights and responsibilities when support ends. During development, vendor engineers should work with internal business specialists, engineers and users, while teams regularly assess business value as well as technical performance. Human oversight and decision-making authority should also be checked.

When support ends, companies should carry out the exit plan agreed at the start and avoid repeatedly extending support because internal teams are unprepared. They need to be ready to operate and improve the system themselves. Gartner also warned that some vendors may label conventional implementation support or consulting as FDE and charge prices that do not match the work. It predicts that fewer than 20% of FDE projects through 2028 will incorporate recurring customer needs into vendors’ core product features, and says the risk of “FDE washing”—selling consulting as FDE—is growing. These are Gartner’s predictions and assessment.

The central challenge is preparing for independence after deployment at the contracting, development and support exit stages. Gartner urges companies to set knowledge transfer and handover terms in contracts, involve internal stakeholders throughout development, and confirm at the end that they can operate and improve systems themselves. Its 70% abandonment forecast for 2028 reflects the risk of companies remaining unable to operate independently while vendor support continues to be extended. The forecast that fewer than 20% of projects will feed customer needs into vendors’ core products points to another concern.