<h1>Software spending surge: businesses prioritise cybersecurity and AI investments while customer reviews drive vendor selection.</h1> Indian businesses are increasing software expenditure in 2025, with strong spending intent among SMEs. Customer reviews, online search and product review sites are the primary influences on vendor selection, supplemented by industry expert recommendations. Investment priorities emphasise IT security and data protection, followed by artificial intelligence, with further focus on IT management, IT architecture improvements (including VPN authentication and cloud storage) and marketing technology.