SOURCE: MediaPost
Odds Are, You’re An AI Laggard — Already Too Far Behind
Very important artificial intelligence research was presented last week at the Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips 2017 Dealmakers AI Summit, an elite invitation-only event in Manhattan to which a friend wrangled plebeian me an invitation.
The research, “Reshaping Business with Artificial Intelligence,” produced by MIT Sloan Management Review and The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), reveals stark differences between companies that are leading the charge to adopt AI (“Pioneers”) and those that are not (“Passives”).
From my own point of view, the report lends credence and a strong fact base to a favorite theme I’ve pounded on in previous columns: Companies that don’t begin working with AI now will never be able to catch up to their competitors who do.
Most of the 3,000+ respondents across 112 countries and 21 industries, of course, are NOT Pioneers. Only 5% have “extensively incorporated [AI] in processes and offerings,” while another 18% have incorporated AI into “some” processes and offerings. That makes for a total adoption level of 23%. Another 23% are only piloting some AI projects, which leaves 54% who have not yet taken even that step.
Based on adoption level and questions that get at how well the respondent understands AI, 19% of the study respondents ended up in the Pioneers pool — they both understand AI well and are adopting it. Next, at 32%, are Investigators, who understand AI but are still piloting; followed by Experimenters (13%), who are “learning by doing” — that is, they’re relatively clueless about AI but are nonetheless piloting or adopting in order to learn. Finally, 36% were deemed Passives — “organizations with no adoption or much understanding of AI.”