# Redwood study finds 77% of firms pay price of unmanaged AI agents

> Survey of 300 executives shows most companies suffer unexpected cloud costs and operational disruptions from poorly governed AI agents.

Oossa · 2026-10-22 · https://oossa.com/en/redwood-study-finds-77-of-firms-pay-price-of-unmanaged-ai-agents

Redwood Software released its 2026 AI Orchestration Benchmark, based on a survey of 300 senior tech, risk and AI leaders. The report says 77 % of companies have faced negative impacts from unmanaged AI agents, most often surprise cloud‑cost bills, followed by operational hiccups and compliance issues. While 89 % increased agent deployments in the past year, only 42 % feel able to connect those agents to legacy systems.

The study highlights that existing systems, not strategy, are the biggest barrier to trustworthy AI agent use.

## The facts

- 77 % of firms experienced costs or disruptions from unmanaged AI agents.
- 89 % increased agent deployments over the last year.

## Why it matters

Enterprises may need better tools to monitor and integrate AI agents, or they risk ongoing hidden expenses and operational risk.

## Sources & references

1. [77 % des entreprises ont payé au prix fort l'absence de gestion des agents d'IA](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/77--des-entreprises-ont-paye-au-prix-fort-labsence-de-gestion-des-agents-dia-302916892.html) – PR Newswire RSS, 2026-10-22
2. [77 % der Unternehmen haben einen Preis für unkontrollierte KI-Agenten gezahlt.](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/77--der-unternehmen-haben-einen-preis-fur-unkontrollierte-ki-agenten-gezahlt-302916712.html) – PR Newswire RSS, 2026-10-22
3. [El 77 % de las empresas han pagado un precio por el uso de agentes de IA sin una gobernanza adecuada](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/el-77--de-las-empresas-han-pagado-un-precio-por-el-uso-de-agentes-de-ia-sin-una-gobernanza-adecuada-302916894.html) – PR Newswire RSS, 2026-10-22

Last updated: 2026-10-22