These two words, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Generative AI (GenAI), you probably would have been hearing so much more about them last year 2023 and even more at the start of year 2024, whether you are in the information technology or industry sectors, or at the ground (end consumer/public) level. Not just government leaders are placing their emphasis, investments and directions on AI and GenAI, technology companies are leading the way in getting AI and GenAI more into how industries and businesses work and operate. How are GenAI and AI going to significantly transform industries in the near future? Dell Technologies Research on AI and GenAI transforming industries in Singapore reported, 90% of firms in Singapore expect AI and GenAI to transform industries, from the Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research.
The Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research is based on responses from 6,600 IT and business decision makers across 40 countries, of which 200 of those responded are from Singapore. Although this Dell research suggests that while there is broad optimism for AI and GenAI, how well the organisations are prepared for the rapid pace of change coming from AI and GenAI, that’s another story.
87% say they are well position competitively and have a solid strategy. At the same time, over a third (36%) of the respondents are uncertain what their industry will look like in the next 3 to 5 years and nearly half (43%) report struggling to keep pace. They cite data privacy and cybersecurity concerns (44%), lack of right talent (38%), and outdated technology environments (28%) as challenges the organisations face in driving digital innovation and digital transformation.
GenAI Significant Potential – Moving from Ideation to Implementation
What is GenAI significant potential – Moving from Ideation to Implementation? 49% of the respondents cite GenAI’s transformative or significant potential to improve IT security posture. 48% of the respondents on streamline processes through improving customer experience, and provide productivity gains or ability to do more (47%).
They are also aware of challenges to overcome: 66% fear GenAI will introduce new security and privacy issues and 77% agreed that their data and IP is too valuable to be placed in a GenAI tool where a 3rd Party may have access.
From a broad perspective coming out from the Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research, the responses suggest that organisations are working through GenAI practicalities as they are transiting from ideation to implementation. 47% said that they have begun implementing GenAI.
As organisations increase adoption, concern centres around understanding where risks reside and who is responsible for them. 81% agree that the organisation, rather than the machine, the user or the public, is responsible for any AI malfunction or undesired behaviour.
“Singapore stands out as a prime location for AI adoption and development. Its leading role in the global AI landscape, coupled with the government’s strong commitment and investment, creates a fertile ground for innovation. Many businesses are taking action to harness the transformative potential of technologies like GenAI and bringing AI to their data to unlock value and drive growth,” shared Andy Sim, Vice President and Managing Director, Singapore, Dell Technologies. “Seizing the opportunity requires a strong ecosystem of trusted partners to create secure and scalable technology foundations for innovation, designed with sustainability in mind. In Singapore, success, innovation, and progress are intertwined.”
Cybersecurity – How are organisations rising to the challenge of current Threat landscape
In a broad context, organisations continue to find cybersecurity to be a pain point for them. These concerns are well-founded, as 75% of respondents say that have been impacted by a security attack in the past 12 months. Majority of the respondents (88%) are pursuing a Zero Trust deployment strategy and 80% say they have an Incident Response Plan in place to recover from a cyberattack or data leakage.
The top 3 cited issues included phishing, data breaches and malware. On the issues with phishing, they are indicative of a wider problem highlighted in the report, which is the role employees play in the threat landscape. For example, 75% of respondents believe some employees go around IT security guidelines and practices because they delay efficiency and productivity, and 68% say that insider threats are a big concern. This indicates a need to focus on training as employees are the 1st line of defence.
Having Right Technology Infrastructure will help Organisations to Succeed
Having Right Technology Infrastructure will help Organisations to Succeed. From this Dell Technologies Research, it reveals the critical role of modern data infrastructure especially as GenAI gather pace and data volumes increase. This was cited as the no. 1 area of improvement for businesses to accelerate innovation – Adopting a data-driven approach to capture and realise innovation projects across the organisation. Most IT decision makers (81%) say they prefer an on-premises or hybrid model, to address the challenges they foresee with implementing GenAI.
A key part of the digital innovation puzzle cited by the respondents, with close to 1 in 3 (32%) – The ability to share data across the business. They can turn data into real-time insights today to support innovation efforts. However, responses from the respondents suggest that organisations are acting on this challenge, with 91% saying that the data is the differentiator and their GenAI strategy must involve using and protecting that data. Almost half (51%) also claim that they anticipate that the bulk of their data will come from the edge in the next 5 years.
Other research findings include:
- Skills: Three-quarters (75%) claim there is currently a shortage of talent required for innovation in their industry. Logic, critical thinking & complex decision-making, learning agility and desire and AI fluency rank as the top skills and competencies for the next five years.
- Sustainability: 33% believe “driving environmentally sustainable innovations” is an important improvement area. Energy efficiency is high on the agenda, with 82% experimenting with as-a-Service solutions to manage their IT environment more efficiently and 81% using alternative cooling solutions to reduce energy use in data centres.
- Making IT a strategic partner: Currently, 77% of business decision makers have reasons to exclude IT decision makers from strategic conversations, yet both departments ranked a stronger relationship as the second most important improvement area.
Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research
The Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research was conducted by Vanson Bourne, commissioned by Dell Technologies. This study surveyed 6,600 respondents from organisations with more than 100 employees from across North America, LatAm, EMEA, APJ and Greater China, ranging from private and public sectors.
If you like to know and read more in-depth on Dell Technologies Innovation Catalyst Research, please visit https://www.dell.com/en-us/dt/perspectives/innovation-catalyst.htm
* Information courtesy of Dell Technologies and BCW *