Evenbytes' Jacinto Pelayo on closing Cantabria's AI adoption gap

Key points

Key takeaways from a Líderes digitales interview with Evenbytes CEO Jacinto Pelayo (September 2026):

AI adoption gap. Just 11.1% of Cantabrian companies with more than 10 employees use AI, against 21.1% nationally — a more than 10-point lag— but Pelayo argues arriving "well" matters more than arriving early: adoption should be reasoned, governed and aimed at production and the bottom line, not hype or experiments.

Barriers to adoption. He attributes the gap to several factors: a shortage of qualified, senior talent (AI depends on expertise in process digitalisation first), low investment focused on very mature technology while AI moves fast, and a regional prudence that prefers certain-return investments — so innovation spending lags.

AI replaces tasks, not people. Pelayo likens AI to a tractor for someone working the land: tasks get automated and jobs change, but people remain essential and stay at the wheel — he sees AI as a complement, not a substitute, for human workers.

Two-speed Cantabria. Tech firms like Evenbytes are cutting-edge on Spanish and European levels, and regional initiatives such as Cantin Valley are doing well; but non-IT companies are slower to adopt AI than in neighboring regions, even if their steps are solid and cautious.

Adding value, not adding AI. Clients arrive either asking for AI or with a concrete problem to solve — the latter is far more productive, he says, since deploying AI for its own sake rarely works. Evenbytes acts as an accompanying partner, advising with common sense, data governance and prudence given the geopolitical sensitivity of data.

Cloud foundation. With more than 10 years in cloud as a Google Cloud Partner, Pelayo stresses the productivity of managed, scalable infrastructure — security, instant scale-up and near-zero cost when idle — while warning that Europe must build sovereign cloud to keep data on European soil.

Talent bottleneck. Senior tech talent must now be attracted from other regions,because it could not be grown locally overnight; junior talent, meanwhile, risks learning less if it relies on AI for everything instead of working problems through independently.

CEMIT 2026 showcase. The Santander event — covering AI, cloud, data, automation and humanoid robots — will show real cases of Cantabrian companies transforming, an "unmatched showcase" that talent and the future have no borders, and that Cantabria's tech solutions serve the world.

Read more: YouTube — Líderes digitales (CEOE-CEPYME Cantabria)