SAP AI for GROW, RISE and ECC Customers: What You Actually Get

At Sapphire 2026 SAP made its AI offer part of the contract question. GROW customers get the full assistant portfolio at onboarding, RISE customers get three assistants in their first year, and ECC customers get AI scenarios only if they commit to the cloud. For a Swiss mid-market company deciding between staying on ECC and moving to S/4HANA Public Cloud, that changes the business case. This post sorts out what SAP said, what it means, and what to clarify, as of 30 October 2026.

TL;DR: SAP’s Sapphire 2026 press release gives GROW with SAP customers full portfolio access to the Joule Assistants at onboarding and RISE with SAP customers three assistants activated in year one. ECC and on-premise customers get select AI scenarios only with a commitment to move most of their landscape to SAP Cloud ERP. Access is not availability: activation and AI unit consumption belong in the contract.

The overview of all Sapphire announcements is in our Sapphire 2026 summary. If you are still choosing the contract model, start with GROW with SAP versus RISE with SAP.

What exactly did SAP promise?

Three sentences from SAP’s Sapphire press release of 12 May 2026 carry the commercial message:

• “SAP GROW customers receive full portfolio access at onboarding.”
• “RISE with SAP customers will have three assistants activated within their first year.”
• “SAP S/4HANA on-premises and SAP ERP Central Component (SAP ECC) customers are not excluded.” Those who commit to moving most of their landscape to SAP Cloud ERP get access to select AI scenarios.

The portfolio itself is large on paper: SAP speaks of “more than 50 domain-specific Joule Assistants” orchestrating “a subset of over 200 specialized agents”. As of 30 October 2026, only part of it is generally available or in phased GA. In CX, for example, the Case Management and Deal Qualification Assistants are in phased GA according to SAP’s Q3 2026 release highlights, and other assistants are planned for 2027.

What does “full portfolio access” mean for GROW?

GROW with SAP is the offer for S/4HANA Public Cloud. Full portfolio access at onboarding is a strong signal: SAP wants AI to be part of the standard from day one, not an add-on sold later.

But nota bene, three things are not settled by the press release:

1. Availability. An assistant you have access to may still be announced, in phased GA, or limited to certain regions or editions. Check what is live for your tenant.
2. Consumption. Joule assistants run agents, and agents consume AI units. Premium AI is billed in AI units; for ABAP AI, SAP has announced the switch “from users-per-month billing to a usage-based model” (SAP News, August 2026).
3. Activation. Someone has to configure, test and roll out each assistant, and the data underneath has to be in order.

Concretely: access is a right to use, not a working assistant. Plan the activation like a small project.

What does RISE get, and what’s the difference?

RISE with SAP is the offer for S/4HANA Private Cloud. According to SAP, RISE also includes access to the Joule Assistants, with three assistants activated within the first year. That activation commitment is the difference to GROW’s wording. Ask SAP which three, on what timeline, who chooses them, and what happens after year one.

For companies weighing Public against Private Cloud, this difference is one more data point. It should not decide the question alone: fit-to-standard, the need for modifications and the operating model matter more. Our comparison of GROW and RISE covers those factors.

What about ECC customers?

For ECC customers, SAP’s message is clear. AI scenarios come with a commitment to move most of the landscape to SAP Cloud ERP. At the same time, mainstream maintenance for SAP ERP 6.0 enhancement packages 6 to 8 ends at the end of 2027, with optional extended maintenance until the end of 2030 (SAP maintenance strategy).

The DSAG, which also represents Swiss SAP users, is critical. At its Annual Congress on 6 October 2026, chairman Jens Hungershausen said the AI scenarios for ECC and on-premise customers “can only be a first step” and that innovations “must not be tied exclusively to commercial cloud contracts” (DSAG). He also noted “a lack of reliable customer experiences with Joule Work and Joule Work Desktop”.

Our read: the ECC condition is less a door closing than a nudge with a date attached. If you were going to move to the cloud before 2028 anyway, the AI terms are a bonus. If you weren’t, they are not a reason on their own. Let the fit of your processes to the standard decide, and treat the AI terms as one line in the business case.

Our ECC 2027 hub has a path finder for the options, and our post on when S/4HANA Public Cloud pays off for Swiss SMEs shows the numbers we look at.

What to clarify before you sign

A short list for your next conversation with SAP:

1. Which assistants are live for your edition, region and tenant today, and which are announced.
2. Activation: who activates them, in which order, and with which prerequisites (Joule onboarding, identity setup).
3. AI units: the rate per agent action, what is included in your subscription, and how consumption is reported.
4. Promotions: which free offers apply to you (for example the Joule Studio agent builder until December 2026) and what applies afterwards.
5. For RISE: which three assistants, by when.
6. For ECC: what exactly “most of the landscape” means in your case, and which AI scenarios the commitment unlocks.

Spadoom’s view

We advise on and implement S/4HANA Public Cloud with GROW, and we see the AI terms as a real argument for a clean, standard Public Cloud core. “Full portfolio access” sounds like everything is included. In our experience, the value comes from planning activation and data work from the start. We help with exactly that: the contract questions before signing, and the first assistants after go-live.

Next step

Want to check what the Sapphire terms mean for your contract or your ECC exit? Start with our S/4HANA Public Cloud page or the ECC 2027 hub, or talk to us directly. We go through your situation and the questions above with you.

FAQ

Which Joule assistants do GROW with SAP customers get?

According to SAP’s Sapphire 2026 press release, GROW with SAP customers receive full portfolio access to the Joule Assistants at onboarding. Access is not the same as availability: which assistants are released, how they are activated and what their agents consume in AI units has to be confirmed for your contract.

What do RISE with SAP customers get?

SAP’s Sapphire 2026 press release says RISE with SAP includes access to the Joule Assistants and that customers will have three assistants activated within their first year. Clarify with SAP which three, when, and which consumption charges apply.

Do SAP ECC customers get Joule and AI agents?

SAP says ECC and S/4HANA on-premise customers are not excluded, but the offer of select AI scenarios requires a commitment to move most of their landscape to SAP Cloud ERP. The DSAG called this only a first step and asked that innovations not be tied exclusively to commercial cloud contracts.

When does SAP ECC maintenance end?

Mainstream maintenance for SAP ERP 6.0 enhancement packages 6 to 8 ends at the end of 2027. SAP offers optional extended maintenance until the end of 2030, at an additional charge.