A Handelsblatt podcast segment discusses SAP’s expectations, n8n’s potential trajectory, and challenges facing the startup.

Industry context: automation platforms compete for budgets by offering workflow orchestration and governance alongside connectivity.

SAP and n8n announced a multi-year commercial agreement to integrate n8n’s visual automation into Joule Studio, SAP’s AI agent builder, enabling SAP customers to connect agents to external systems without custom code.

As part of the deal, SAP took roughly a 1.3% stake in n8n and established a broader engagement exceeding €60 million, including a secondary share purchase and a license to embed n8n technology into SAP products.

The collaboration signals a strategic move to integrate n8n’s automation software into SAP’s ecosystem, positioning n8n as a native capability within Joule Studio to scale agentic AI across core processes.

A related EY-backed study highlighted by Handelsblatt examines the 500 firms with the highest R&D spend, noting US dominance, the link between heavy R&D investment and returns, and Germany’s slower pace in R&D investment.

n8n previously raised funds in 2025 at a valuation around $2 billion, underscoring rapid growth and strong investor interest.

The podcast hosting and production team includes Ben Mendelson and Max Rex, with additional reporting by Nadine Schimroszik.

SAP’s rationale for the investment focuses on access to n8n’s technology and growth, with discussions about future steps and potential stock-market listing.

The investment appears to involve a secondary purchase from existing holders, with reports of a €100 million fund to accelerate partner AI software rollouts.

Klein notes that integrating n8n into Joule Studio will help scale practical, governance-backed agentic AI across business processes.

SAP’s CEO emphasizes governance, data reliability, and deep process knowledge as essential to enterprise AI adoption, aligning n8n integration with scalable, enterprise-grade AI.