The emergence and rapid development of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is having an unprecedented impact on business. As many as 80 percent of leaders expect transformations in their companies as a result of adopting this technology in the next three years – according to the report, The State of Generative AI in the Enterprise, prepared by the consulting firm Deloitte. At the same time, 78 percent of respondents see the need for appropriate legal regulations for artificial intelligence.
The report, The State of Generative AI in the Enterprise, includes opinions from over 2,800 business and technology leaders involved in implementing or testing the capabilities of generative AI in their organizations. The survey covers respondents from 16 markets and will be published quarterly.
An overwhelming majority of leaders share the view that generative artificial intelligence will change the way their organizations operate in the next three years. Every third executive assumes that this transformation will happen within the current year. Like other new technologies, the adoption of generative AI focuses initially on the use of new tools to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
The leaders of global companies use generative AI for tactical purposes, such as improving efficiency (56 percent) or reducing costs (35 percent). Only one in three respondents declares they are seeking benefits in the area of innovation and growth (29 percent) or introducing new products and services. A vast majority of respondents are counting on increased productivity in the company (91 percent).
Respondents who declare a higher level of knowledge in the field of generative AI in their organization place less emphasis on tactical objectives and more often focus on the ability to create new ideas and draw new conclusions (23 percent compared to 19 percent for all respondents). Moreover, nearly three-quarters of the most technologically advanced companies are starting to use AI to develop their products and R&D activities. These are key factors driving innovation and growth.
Regardless of the aims of AI adoption, two-thirds (62 percent) of respondents declare that the dominant emotion that accompanies them in relation to this technology is excitement. However, for as many as 30 percent of respondents, enthusiasm is tinged with a sense of uncertainty.
The managers of the largest global companies do not limit themselves to using generative AI to improve financial, IT, or HR processes, but see the potential for transforming entire organizations and teams. If, according to the majority of respondents, this change will occur within three years, decisions about its direction must be made now. Furthermore, two out of five respondents from the most advanced organizations in terms of AI adoption claim they feel competitive pressure regarding the use of new possibilities.
The application of generative AI may enable a competitive advantage and significant benefits in terms of introducing innovation and building value for the organization – adds Piotr Mechliński, associate partner specializing in generative AI, Deloitte.
Trust and Regulations
A factor that helps build trust in generative AI and its capabilities are legal regulations. Nearly 80 percent of survey respondents indicate the need to create appropriate regulations at the national level. Almost three-quarters of leaders also recognize the need for closer global cooperation on AI-related issues.
As for the stage of regulation development, the technology itself, and the competencies within the organization, most businesses opt to use ready-made solutions in the field of generative AI. Moreover, nearly half of the organizations declaring the highest readiness to adopt new technology indicate that competitive actions observed in the market increase the pressure to implement new solutions in their organizations.
The most commonly used solutions based on generative AI currently include productivity-enhancing applications (71 percent), ready-made AI apps (68 percent), enterprise management systems utilizing generative AI (61 percent), and widely available large language models like ChatGPT (56 percent).
In the Polish market, we observe similar trends. Companies initially opt to implement ready-made applications, such as office software packages. They then progress to enterprise-class systems that include AI-supported modules. As new technologies become popular, more and more businesses lean towards creating new solutions based on available models but adapted to their needs and utilizing knowledge specific to their organization.
Building AI Competencies
With the advancement of new technology and the changes it will bring in organizations, a change in talent management will be necessary – over 70 percent of the surveyed management staff share this view to occur within three years. Moreover, as many as 17 percent of global company leaders believe that changes in talent management strategy are necessary immediately, and one in four respondents believe they will become necessary within the current year.
In the near future, we will observe an increase in organizations’ efforts to recruit and develop employee competencies in the field of AI. Currently, over 40 percent of IT representatives surveyed in Poland believe that AI skills will be the most valued in the market in the next 2-3 years. However, when talking about deeper organizational transformations, the needed competencies go far beyond data analytics or IT.
About the Study
Aiming to support leaders in business, technology, and the public sector in keeping pace with the rapid progress of generative AI, Deloitte conducts a series of quarterly surveys. The series is based on Deloitte’s State of AI in the Enterprise reports, which have been published annually for five consecutive years.
The first edition of the survey was conducted among 2,835 respondents from director level to senior manager level in six industries and 16 countries from October to December 2023. Industries: consumer; energy, resources, and industry; financial services; life sciences and healthcare; technology, media, and communications; and the government and public services sector.
