NetSuite unveils AI features to help UK SMEs work smarter and scale faster

The announcements were made at SuiteConnect London, where the first cloud company set out its vision for making AI practical and accessible for growing businesses.

Businesses eager to invest in AI – but need guidance

AI adoption and enthusiasm is accelerating among UK businesses, with EY research revealing that 96% of CEOs plan to invest in AI within the next year.

Yet, many SMEs are still in the early stages of turning that ambition into tangible results.

Nicky Tozer, NetSuite’s senior vice president, EMEA, believes the challenge lies not in interest, but execution.

“AI doesn’t operate in isolation; its effectiveness depends on the environment around it and quality of data,” she explained.

“So, the opportunity is not just about adopting AI but creating the conditions to deliver true impact. It’s clear then that the next phase of growth will be defined by how effectively organisations scale, adapt and operate in complex environments.”

For Evan Goldberg, founder and executive vice president, NetSuite’s approach to AI is in helping businesses “do more with less.”

“AI is really changing everything now,” he said. “We’re seeing great technological change.”

For SMEs in particular, the opportunity lies in harnessing the right foundations, helping ensure that data is connected, accessible, and ready to deliver meaningful insights.

AI as a business ‘autopilot’

NetSuite is positioning itself as the foundation for its customers to leverage AI. The best AI comes from the best data, and as NetSuite centralises information from across the business, it creates the bedrock for powerful, actionable AI.

According to Goldberg, NetSuite’s strategy is clear: to act as an “autopilot” for business operations.

“Our north star is to make NetSuite the autopilot for your business. The suite is at the core of your business, deeply embedded across your financials, your operations, and your workflows, with access to real-time connected data across your entire organisation.

“It understands how your business operates, the rules, constraints and nuances, so it can adapt, prioritise and respond in context. It is designed to be trusted. It works alongside your teams using the same permissions and surfaces insights, while also explaining what it is doing and ensuring you stay informed. As AI accelerates, NetSuite helps you manage that complexity so you can move faster, operate at scale, and do more with less.”

AI as a natural extension of operations

In the next 12 months, NetSuite’s UK customers can look forward to the introduction of NetSuite Next, the next generation of NetSuite, which embeds conversational AI and agentic workflows into the heart of the system.

Central to NetSuite Next is Ask Oracle, which helps businesses navigate, analyse and act across the entire suite using their own words. Patrick Puck, group vice president of AI strategy, engineering and design, outlined why NetSuite Next will be a natural extension of how businesses already work.

“It speaks your language and can turn information into action. From finance operations to sales, whatever your task. It is powered by your single source of truth in NetSuite, with the enterprise-grade security and permissions that you already trust.

“As well as Ask Oracle, NetSuite’s new global assistant allows you to search, navigate, analyse and act across the entire suite using your own words. It makes AI accessible to everyone, even if your spelling isn’t perfect.”

AI, your way

NetSuite’s approach to AI is not just inward-looking. While many software vendors have added AI as fixed, embedded features, NetSuite is leveraging its extensible architecture to help customers connect business data with external AI systems. This offers flexibility and recognises that businesses may perform some tasks outside of the system.

NetSuite AI Connector Service helps businesses connect AI models like Claude or ChatGPT to NetSuite data and apply AI more effectively across their operations, while keeping permissions and controls in place. This adds an additional layer of intelligence that understands business context, provides a governed way for employees to harness AI in alignment with organisational policy, and allows businesses to take control of AI interactions without stifling innovation.

The emphasis on control is key, particularly for SMEs managing sensitive financial and operational data.

An addition to NetSuite AI Connector Service is MCP Apps, which will extend the solution by bringing familiar NetSuite user experiences directly into popular AI assistants. Instead of relying solely on text-based prompts, MCP Apps allow users to interact with NetSuite data through structured interfaces such as filters, selectors and forms rendered directly inside AI assistants. Examples include the Prompt Library, Report Picker and Record Picker.

What this means for UK SMEs

While AI hype continues to dominate headlines, the challenge for SMEs is making it work in practice. NetSuite’s latest announcements signal a shift towards more integrated, usable and secure AI, features that are not just powerful, but practical.

As these capabilities roll out across the UK, the message is clear: businesses that can effectively harness their data and embed AI into everyday operations will be best placed to grow in an increasingly competitive landscape.

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