Australian businesses are preparing to make substantial investments in digital technologies, aiming to drive innovation, improve operational efficiency, and remain competitive in an increasingly technology-driven economy.

Following the recent pandemic, Australian businesses are making major investments in digital technology to support their ambitious expansion plans.

Equinix’s annual survey of technology decision makers reveals that businesses remain optimistic about their plans to expand globally, despite fears of a recession and the talk at Davos’ World Economic Forum about globalisation ending.

The digital pandemic continues its impact on business’ digital strategies. More than half (56%) of Australia’s IT executives are now accelerating their company’s digital evolution due to the COVID-19 crisis.

72% of the 2,900 IT decision makers surveyed worldwide in Equinix 2022 Global Technology Trends Survey indicated that their organisation plans to expand into new markets within the next 12 months.

Another interesting finding was that almost half (49%) of respondents said Melbourne is the most popular market to establish a presence or plan to expand in the next 12 month. Sydney followed at 45%.

53% confirmed that their IT budgets increased due to the legacy. This is a clear indication of the need for a robust digital infrastructure to meet evolving business requirements. 61% also believed that the technological changes and investments made during the pandemic would continue.

Australian businesses identified several potential limiting factors that could hinder their business’ success. 74% of respondents were concerned about security breaches and the changing regulations around data privacy.

71% also expressed concern about cyber-attacks on their organization. Nearly 80% of Australian respondents stated that they plan to increase or maintain spending on carrier neutral colocation solutions. 80% also said they intend to increase or keep investment in interconnection services for digital transformation and resilience.

Managing director at Equinix Australia Guy Danskine says the survey illustrates that Australia’s digital leaders, despite economic uncertainties and other challenges, will invest in and plan for continued digital expansion to ensure their future business success.

“It’s clear the pandemic has accelerated growth and innovation, and advanced organisations’ digital evolution,”

“Australian businesses recognise the benefits and efficiencies of new digital models, such as multicloud strategies, to facilitate their ambitious growth plans, capitalising on emerging technologies that can deliver exceptional performance in real-time.” says Danskine

The survey also reveilles in Australia:

• 74% say they have a plan in place to manage the environmental impact of growing data usage
  
  

• 68% report sustainability is now one of their organisation’s most important drivers with commitments made to science-based targets.
  
  
• 75% of IT leaders said they plan to move more business functions to the cloud. Of those respondents, half plan to move more of their business-critical applications, and more than half (55%) intend to move security functions to the cloud.
  
  
• 69% of respondents said they are moving to an everything as a service (XaaS) model, citing the simplification of IT infrastructure
  
  
• 65% will only work with IT partners who can meet key carbon reduction targets.
  
  
• 68% report sustainability is now one of their organisation’s most important drivers with commitments made to science-based targets.
  

• 61% are measuring and actively trying to limit the environmental impact of their IT equipment.

According to their digital-first strategies, 85 percent of Australian respondents agreed that compliance with local market data regulations was critical. 82% stated cybersecurity as a top priority, and 75% emphasized the importance of futureproofing their businesses.

Rick Villars, Group Vice President for Worldwide Research at IDC, notes that as enterprises navigate disruptions from inflation, supply chain issues, and unmet skill needs that emerged in the first half of 2022, IT leaders face significant challenges.

IDC regularly hears from these leaders that they require quick and extensive access to innovative technology, interconnectivity, and intelligent SaaS resources to address these pressures.

“Companies like Equinix, that can speed access to needed facilities and connectivity options, while also enabling more effective use of hybrid and multicloud services, will play a vital role in helping IT teams make sustainable technology investment decisions and take full advantage of SaaS and digital infrastructure.” Villars noted.

President of Equinix Asia-Pacific, Jeremy Deutsch says we are thrilled to see business leaders in Asia-Pacific prepare for international expansion and show more determination to speed up their pace for digitisation despite current financial concerns and operational constraints from global supply chains.

“This current trend is in line with findings from our latest study, where 85% of IT leaders in Asia-Pacific were confident about global expansion strategies,” says Deutsch

Australian Businesses Accelerate Digital Investment as Software Spending Hits Record Levels – 2025

Australian business investment in software has surged to 10.5% of total private business investment in 2024/25, up from just 6% a decade earlier, reflecting a fundamental shift in how companies operate.

Nearly half of Australian companies plan to integrate generative AI for customer-facing and operational tasks in 2025, with technology investment growing almost 80% over the past ten years.

Currently, Australian businesses invest approximately $90 billion in technology adoption, equivalent to 2.2% of GDP. However, industry leaders are calling for this to increase substantially, arguing that raising total tech investment from 3.7% to 4.6% of GDP could deliver $39 billion in productivity gains by 2035.

The shift is being driven by practical returns, with businesses achieving return on investment in an average of 4.4 months—faster than the anticipated 6.2 months. For digitally mature companies, results come even quicker: 64% of fully digitalised businesses achieve ROI in under three months.

Beyond AI, quantum computing is projected to add at least $6.1 billion to Australia’s GDP by 2045, with businesses increasingly exploring cloud computing, cybersecurity enhancements, and IoT applications to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving digital economy.