Technologists say artificial intelligence will lead to rapid efficiency gains

A new report by MIT Technology Review Insights, entitled Laying the foundation for data and AI-led growth, produced in partnership with Databricks, shows the majority of global C-suite executives surveyed for the report say they expect artificial intelligence (AI) to boost efficiency in their respective industries by at least 25 per cent in the next two years. “One-third say the gain will be at least 50 per cent,” they state.

The survey of 600 chief information, technology and data officers from large and public sector-organizations further found a proliferation of data and AI systems: 81 per cent of respondents said their organizations use 10 or more of these systems, with 28 per cent reporting that their organizations use more than 20. “The executives we interviewed aim to pare down their multiple systems,” the report states.

Among respondents, 26 per cent said they are investing in AI, while 62 per cent said they are experimenting with it. “The majority, 58 per cent, are taking a hybrid approach to developing these capabilities, using vendors’ large language models (LLMs) for some use cases and building their own models when intellectual property ownership, privacy, security and accuracy requirements are higher.” Responses also indicate that companies intend to be more structured and programmatic about their AI investments going forward. Investment in AI capabilities and the data infrastructure that support them, is expected to increase by double digits in the coming year.

Notably, they say talent and upskilling remain a challenge, overshadowing many responses. When asked where their company’s data strategy needed to improve, 39 per cent said an investment in talent was needed. “The number one difficulty they face with their data and AI platforms, with 40 per cent citing this as a top concern, is training and upskilling staff to use them.” 

The extensive report also examines governance, different data architectures being used and the challenges emerging as adoption mounts. “Enterprise adoption of AI is ready to shift into higher gear,” the report’s authors write. “Every organization surveyed will boost spending on modernizing data infrastructure and adopting AI during the next year. For nearly half, 46 per cent, the increase will exceed 25 per cent.”