The Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant for 2023 has finally been released. Offering an insight into the major players of the evolving Robotic Process Automation space, this detailed report is designed to assist companies in choosing the ideal vendors for their needs.
According to Gartner, the market for RPA software reached a value of $2.8 billion in 2022, up from only $2.3 billion the year before. The analyst notes the market’s annual growth of 22% exceeded the average growth of the software segment at 11%. However, the RPA market’s expansion also seems to have slowed slightly in recent years, dropping from 39% in 2020.
Gartner believes part of the reason for this is that the space is growing more consolidated and competitive. Gartner’s insights into the Leaders, Challengers, Visionaries, and Niche Players in the transforming space should provide businesses with a more succinct view of the segment today.
Gartner’s Definition of Robotic Process Automation (RPA)
Before we evaluate the 16 players in this year’s Gartner RPA Market Quadrant, it’s worth examining how the analyst defines the world of Robotic Process Automation.
Gartner sees “RPA” software as the technology used to automate tasks within IT and business processes. Companies can use software scripts in the RPA environment to emulate human interactions with an application interface. This means manual tasks can be automated through efficient “bots” or “robots” in the ecosystem.
Gartner notes Robotic Process Automation is used in various industries, for multiple business functions. IT users leverage RPA solutions to move data in and out of applications without the need for human interaction. However, companies can also keep the “human in the loop” with attended automation. RPA systems can extract information and prepare it for human consumption.
Notably, Gartner states the RPA software space has changed significantly in the last 5 years. Increasingly, application leaders are moving beyond tactical automation to deliver greater efficiency, agility, and business efficacy.
What’s more, Generative AI and Large Language Models are now entering the market. Gartner says virtually every RPA vendor is either currently experimenting with AI, or plans to do so in the future. By 2025, the analyst predicts 90% of RPA vendors will offer generative-AI automation.
The 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant Leaders
The Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant splits vendors into four distinct sections. Leaders in the Quadrant demonstrate a clear understanding of market trends and opportunities. They have an excellent record for delivering solutions based on customer expectations. They also demonstrate an incredible ability to innovate and experiment. This year’s leaders are:
- UIPath
- Automation Anywhere
- SS&C Blue Prism
- Microsoft
- NICE
UIPath
Maintaining its leadership position from 2022, UIPath provides an end-to-end set of hyperautomation capabilities for the modern RPA market. According to Gartner, the company serves every buyer segment with a global “Business Automation Platform”. The brand benefits from exceptional brand visibility, product strategy, and a diverse customer base of over 10,000 enterprises. It also stands as the largest RPA vendor on the Quadrant by revenue.
Automation Anywhere
Rebranding its RPA product to the “Automation Success Platform” for 2023, Automation Anywhere is expanding beyond basic robotic process automation capabilities. Gartner notes the company has a strong focus on innovation, and has developed intuitive features for its platform, such as “AISense” for computer vision, and an IQ bot for AI/ML. What’s more, the brand has an excellent customer success strategy, and a strong understanding of the needs of its target audience.
SS&C Blue Prism
Despite almost slipping into the Challenger category in 2021’s Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant, SS&C has surged ahead in 2023. SS&C Blue Prism offers a wide range of RPA capabilities, as well as connectors for enterprise applications. It also provides customers with opportunities to bundle solutions like an orchestrator, bot licenses, and development studio tools. The company now has more than 168,000 active RPA users worldwide.
Microsoft
Though Microsoft slipped down slightly in the rankings for 2023, it still maintains its leadership position with Power Automate. The Azure-powered solution includes reusable UI element collectors and powerful cloud connectors. Gartner drew attention to the integration of Microsoft 365 Copilot as a strength for Microsoft this year. It also commended the company’s robust ecosystem, and it’s affordable pricing and sales strategies for new businesses.
NICE
Further down in the leadership list this year, NICE is the only leading CCaaS vendor in the 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant. It’s NICE RPA product consists of various “NEVA” branded solutions for attended and unattended automation in the contact center. Gartner acknowledged the company’s AI-based augmentation tools for agents this year, as well as it’s focus on targeting global enterprises and contact centers with a specific vertical/industry strategy.
The 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant Challengers
The Challengers in the Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant have a strong global customer base, and have demonstrated exceptional success in delivering solutions for specific use cases. However, Gartner notes these vendors generally cater to particular segments of the market. This year’s only challenger replaced “WorkFusion” from 2022. The only challenger is:
- Cyclone Robotics
Cyclone Robotics
Moving up from the “Niche players” segment in 2022, Cyclone Robotics achieved its Challenger status with a selection of AI-amplified enterprise-level tools this year. Gartner commended the company’s mature portfolio of capabilities for various RPA needs. Plus, the analyst highlighted the organization’s growing focus on artificial intelligence and GPT style solutions. Cyclone Robotics also differentiated itself in 2023 with a clear understanding of it’s target market in the Asia/Pacific region.
The 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant Visionaries
The Visionaries in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant focus heavily on innovation, with a unique approach to Robotic Process Automation. Though they frequently grow into market leaders, visionaries have yet to fully demonstrate their “ability to execute”. This year’s Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant visionaries include:
- Pegasystems
- Appian
- SAP
- Salesforce
Pegasystems
Benefiting from exceptional growth this year, Pegasystems’ RPA platform integrates closely with it’s wider enterprise software portfolio. The company offers solutions for end-to-end automation, real-time bot resource allocation, NLP solutions and more. Gartner applauds the company’s innovative approach to development, and its patented automation technology. However, the analyst still believes the platform suffers from excessive complexity.
Appian
The Appian RPA product demonstrates the company’s exceptional understanding of its target market. Appian’s solutions provide a comprehensive toolkit for hyperautomation, and allow companies to leverage comprehensive end-to-end strategies for innovation. Additionally, Gartner notes that Appian benefits from an exceptional partner ecosystem. The Appian marketplace also has an AppMarket of over 600 components, frameworks, and extensions for RPA development.
SAP
Dropping just below Salesforce this year, SAP benefits from a globally distributed portfolio of tools, featuring AI, workflow, and business rule management. Gartner notes SAP has a phenomenal ecosystem, and a large worldwide customer base. Plus, the company has improved its product in recent year by enabling integration with SAP Signavio. The analyst also applauds SAP’s pricing model and sales strategy.
Salesforce
With MuleSoft RPA, Salesforce benefits from a fantastic global audience, and a robust product portfolio. Salesforce has already earned a leadership position in various other Magic Quadrants. It also has an impressive business model, with a strong global partner network. Gartner also notes that Salesforce has an excellent level of viability in the RPA market. However, it has failed to effectively promote it’s RPA products in the last year.
The 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant Niche Players
Niche Players in the 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant have shown significant potential in the industry. They’ve demonstrated their ability to deliver valuable platforms and tools to specific segments. However, they sometimes trail behind other more established companies. This year’s Niche Players include:
- Samsung SDS
- EdgeVerve Systems
- IBM
- Nintex
- Laiye
- Hyland
Samsung SDS
Making its way to the top of this year’s Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant is Samsung SDS. It’s rebranded product, the Brity Automation platform, achieved significant growth of 52% in 2022. Additionally, Gartner notes Samsung SDS benefits from a comprehensive product portfolio, including IDP, AI/ML, and RPA offerings. With a huge partner ecosystem, Samsung is well positioned for growth. However, the company’s visibility suffers slightly outside of the Asia/Pacific region.
EdgeVerve Systems
Added back to the Magic Quadrant this year, EdgeVerve Systems proved itself to Gartner with the impressive AssistEdge RPA solution. The solution has evolved in the last year, and the company’s roadmap includes adding OpenAI integration into the ecosystem. Gartner commended the company’s understanding of the market, as well as it’s consumption-based pricing strategy. Plus, it noted that EdgeVerve’s RPA ecosystem is well-supported by Infosys.
IBM
Edging up in the ranks for 2023, IBM offers its RPA product as part of a broad hyperautomation suite. According to Gartner, IBM has proven itself this year with a strong global presence, featuring offices and partners in virtually every region. IBM’s RPA product also offers very strong features, with access to AI-augmented solutions through Watson. Gartner also drew attention to IBM’s exceptional focus on customer service and support.
Nintex
After acquiring Kyron in 2022, Nintex has enhanced its RPA solution, offered as part of the Nintex Process Platform. According to Gartner, Nintex has a fantastic workflow ecosystem, with a web-based interface and strong security controls. It also benefits from a robust customer ecosystem, with more than 10,000 automation customers worldwide. However, the analyst notes the platform lacks some more advanced developer-centric features.
Laiye
Well-suited for use with diverse operating systems, Laiye’s RPA product has grown significantly over the last year. The company is planning on adding automated process generators with large language models to its ecosystem. It also offers a convenient, unified platform to its end-users, which Gartner applauds. The analyst also drew attention to the company’s focus on innovation, and it’s interest in creating industry-specific automation capabilities.
Hyland
Added to the 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant, Hyland RPA was acquired from “Another Monday”. The RPA solution has effectively captured the attention of existing Hyland customers, and enterprise buyers in search of a simple packaged solution. According to Gartner, the company’s RPA business grew by around 36% over the last year. Additionally, Hyland benefits from a strong industry/vertical focus, with a portfolio of more than 13,000 customized solutions.
The Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant: What’s Changed from 2022?
There haven’t been a lot of changes to the Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant over the last year. Most of the usual suspects still appear at the top of the list. All of the Leaders in the Magic Quadrant have retained their positions from the previous year.
However, Cyclone Robotics did shift upwards from its position as a “Niche Player” in 2022, to the only Challenger in this year’s report. Within each segment, there have been a few slight changes too, with SS&C Blue Prism now ranking higher, and Samsung SDS showing increased ability to execute.
Two new vendors were also added to the list: EdgeVerve Systems and Hyland. EdgeVerve had previously held a position on the RPA Magic Quadrant prior to 2022’s report.
The only company removed from the Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant this year was “WorkFusion”. According to Gartner, this brand is no longer actively competing as an RPA vendor, and intends to move away from the landscape going forward.
What’s Next for Robotic Process Automation?
The 2023 Gartner RPA Magic Quadrant offers a useful insight into the evolution of the Robotic Process Automation segment in the last year. Throughout the report, Gartner drew a lot of attention to the fact that companies are now adding more advanced AI solutions to their ecosystems.
Gartner believes generative AI and large language models are set to play a significant role in the growth of RPA platforms going forward. The analyst also notes that many platforms are becoming more advanced, with a focus on broader levels of “hyperautomation”.
Who knows what might happen in the year ahead? For now, we say congratulations to all of this year’s Magic Quadrant Leaders.
