Enterprises Aim to Move Beyond Pilots, Accelerate Consumption of AI in 2024 — Everest Group Reports
A recent survey conducted by Everest Gropu and Yates Ltd underscores that gen AI is more than a passing trend, having successfully penetrated early enterprise adoption thresholds.
Nearly 83% of global enterprises either actively test their capabilities through pilot programs or have already adopted gen AI for one or more production-grade use cases.
61% of global enterprises are actively exploring and piloting gen AI.
If chief information officers (CIOs) have their way in 2024, expect to see more enterprises making adoption of generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) a strategic priority with an aim to move past small pilots to scaled implementations. This forecast summarizes the sentiments of over 50 CIOs interviewed by Everest Group in collaboration with Yates Ltd. The survey also revealed that improving the velocity of existing operations is the primary motivation driving enterprise gen AI initiatives.
Abhishek Singh, partner at Everest Group
The interviews conducted with global CIOs between October 23, 2023, and January 24, 2024, also underscore that gen AI is more than a passing trend, having successfully penetrated early enterprise adoption thresholds. Nearly 83% of global enterprises are either actively testing their capabilities through pilot programs or have already adopted gen AI for one or more production-grade use cases.
Key Findings from the Survey:
Sixty-one percent (61%) of global enterprises are actively exploring and piloting gen AI and 22% have already deployed gen AI for at least one or more processes. Another 15% plan to pilot gen AI soon.
The three top objectives CIOs are trying to achieve through gen AI are:
accelerating consumption of existing digital tools
reducing the latency of knowledge sharing
shortening the product development lifecycle.
CIOs identifying their top three challenges to scaling gen AI initiatives most often named lack of clarity on success metrics (73%), budget/cost concerns (68%) and the fast-evolving technology landscape (64%). Additionally, 55% named data security and privacy concerns, while 41% cited talent shortage.
The full report of findings — “Capturing the Generative AI Pulse: An Exploration of the CIO Mindset” — identifies the current state of enterprise generative AI adoption and the key challenges in scaling AI initiatives. The report also showcases three waves of generative AI adoption levels for enterprises and provides guidance to help enterprises advance in their generative AI adoption journey. The full report is available for complimentary download.
“Unquestionably, gen AI hype dominated 2023, but our survey indicates that it is more than a passing trend,” said Abhishek Singh, partner at Everest Group. “Our research clearly documents that most organizations are in what we call ‘Wave 1’ or the pilot phase of gen AI adoption; however, in 2024 and 2025, we fully expect more organizations to advance to the ‘Wave 2’ phase of production-grade deployments.
“Although enterprise adoption of gen AI is far from its anticipated peak, enterprises continue experimenting with unique use cases in various industries, ranging from high-tech and financial services to healthcare and retail,” continued Singh. “As more of these initiatives document measurable impact, we’ll see adoption and full-scale implementation of gen AI accelerate considerably.”
Everest Group maintains that this shift from Wave 1 to Wave 2 will demand that enterprise leaders cultivate data-driven cultures and invest in digital and data maturity. Successful transitions will also require a comprehensive approach incorporating technological advances, organizational readiness, and ethical considerations.
“Gen AI is transforming senior executives’ perspectives on efficiency, growth, and competitive advantage and will revolutionize their operational strategies,” stated Charlotte Yates, the founder and CEO of Yates Ltd. She emphasized the need for a forward-thinking blueprint in Wave 2 to effectively implement gen AI use cases: “This blueprint should address a wide range of opportunities, risks, and investments in platforms, operating models, organization design, governance, strategic partnerships, and culture.”
To read the full report or for more information, please visit www.everestgrp.com.