SAP CEO urges Europe not to regulate AI, says will put region behind

Instead, Klein argued, businesses need a more harmonized, pan-European approach to pressing issues like the energy crisis and digital transformation — and less regulation overall, not more.

Upbeat earnings

His comments came after SAP reported bumper third-quarter earnings late Monday. Shares of the software vendor jumped more than 4% to a record high.

The software giant posted total revenue of 8.5 billion euros ($9.2 billion) for the quarter, up 9% year-over-year as sales related to cloud products jumped 25%.

SAP raised its 2024 outlook for cloud and software revenue, operating profit and free cash flow. The German firm has been working toward a transition to cloud computing over the last decade.

In 2016, SAP acquired Concur, the business travel and expenses platform, in a bet that software would move to the cloud.

More recently, SAP has made AI a big focus of its strategy as it looks to reposition itself for faster growth after higher interest rates and macroeconomic headwinds dented tech spending and led to industry-wide layoffs.

In January, SAP announced a restructuring plan affecting over 7% of its global workforce — or the equivalent of 8,000 roles.