The importance of artificial intelligence (AI) in second/foreign language (L2) education has recently captured the attention of several scholars. However, the current scope of literature lacks a cross-cultural investigation into teachers' AI-readiness. To bridge the gap, this study employed a semi-structured interview to unveil the perceptions of 40 Iranian and Italian English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers regarding AI-readiness and its ecosystem. The results of MAXQDA analysis indicated that Italian teachers were ready to integrate AI tools into their classes, while Iranian teachers reported a lack of readiness to do so. Furthermore, it was found that the participants of both contexts perceived AI-readiness to be composed of a gamut of micro, meso, and macro factors. Despite some similarities in enlisting micro and meso factors of AI-readiness, the participants varied at the macro-level factors. Iranian EFL teachers mostly highlighted the role of "economic requirements" and "technological infrastructures" in shaping their readiness, while Italian respondents stressed the "cultural beliefs/values," and "educational system". The study discusses the implications of AI injection into L2 classes for EFL teachers and educators and presents some future directions.