Progress Agentic RAG Named 2026 AI Excellence Award Winner for Advancing Retrieval-Augmented Generation

Recognition underscores Progress Software's innovation in removing barriers to GenAI research and making trustworthy RAG accessible to organizations of any size

BURLINGTON, Mass., May 14, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Progress Software (NASDAQ:PRGS), the trusted provider of AI-powered digital experience and infrastructure software, today announced that Progress® Agentic RAG has been named a winner in the 2026 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards in the Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) category. Presented by the Business Intelligence Group, the awards recognize organizations, products, teams and individuals applying artificial intelligence (AI) to drive real-world, measurable impact.

Progress Agentic RAG is a breakthrough SaaS platform that serves as an enterprise knowledge layer, transforming unstructured data from 60+ formats into a shared, governed intelligence foundation. With applications across numerous business functions, including internal search, compliance, customer support and analytics, organizations ingest their unstructured assets once and maintain centralized control over retrieval, evaluation and security. Teams can tailor retrieval strategies and swap large language models (LLMs) at the feature level without reengineering their data pipelines. With no-code deployment and built-in RAG evaluation, governance and traceability, Progress Agentic RAG delivers accurate, citation-backed answers that help organizations accelerate productivity, improve decision-making and operationalize AI with confidence.

Enterprises are deploying the platform to power sales assistants, support agents, research copilots and AI search experiences that connect contracts, case files, support tickets and internal expertise across legal, support, operations and research teams within a single governed knowledge layer. For example, a European law firm recently empowered nearly 300 professionals to handle thousands of legal inquiries each month while reducing manual research time.

"AI has arrived! 2026 is about execution, accountability, and results," said Russ Fordyce, Chief Recognition Officer, Business Intelligence Group. "Progress Software stood out because its work in retrieval augmented generation reflects where the market is headed: practical AI that solves real problems, earns trust, and delivers measurable value. This recognition highlights a team that is not just participating in the AI shift but helping define what meaningful progress looks like."

The 2026 Artificial Intelligence Excellence Awards honor achievement across a wide range of industries and use cases, spotlighting companies that are moving AI beyond experimentation and into responsible, production-ready deployment. This year's program recognized winners spanning 36 industries and more than 15 countries.

"We're honored to be recognized by the Business Intelligence Group for innovation in Retrieval-Augmented Generation," said John Ainsworth, EVP and General Manager, Application and Data Platform, Progress Software. "Progress Agentic RAG was designed to equip organizations with GenAI they can rely on—technology that not only accelerates productivity, but enables transparency, compliance and real-world performance. This award is a meaningful acknowledgment of that mission."

This latest recognition adds to a growing list of global accolades that highlight the innovation and market impact of Progress Agentic RAG. The platform was named Overall Data Technology Innovation of the Year at the 2026 Data Breakthrough Awards, earned Silver in the Enterprise Retrieval-Augmented Generation Solution category at the 2026 Globee Awards for Artificial Intelligence, received top honors in the Artificial Intelligence category at the 2025 Global Tech Awards, and was recognized with the AI Innovation Award at the Leaders of Influence Awards 2025—underscoring its expanding role in driving enterprise AI adoption worldwide.

For more information about Progress Agentic RAG, visit https://www.progress.com/agentic-rag.

About Progress Software  

Progress Software (NASDAQ:PRGS) empowers organizations to achieve transformational success in the face of disruptive change. Our software enables customers to develop, deploy and manage responsible AI-powered applications and personalized digital experiences with agility and ease. Businesses of all sizes rely on Progress for the products, expertise and vision they need to turn AI disruption into a competitive advantage. Millions of developers and technologists at hundreds of thousands of organizations depend on Progress every day. Learn more at www.progress.com.

Progress and certain product names used herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Progress Software Corporation and/or one of its subsidiaries or affiliates in the U.S. and/or other countries. See Trademarks for appropriate markings. All rights in any other trademarks contained herein are reserved by their respective owners and their inclusion does not imply an endorsement, affiliation or sponsorship as between Progress and the respective owners.

Press Contact:             

Kim Baker            

Progress Software

+1-800-477-6473            

pr@progress.com