The AI Revolution and APAC’s Tech Moment
- By David Irecki, Boomi
- March 20, 2024
The past few years have marked a monumental shift in the landscape of artificial intelligence (AI), with breakthroughs and innovations propelling this once-niche technology into the mainstream. The progress in AI has been so significant that it's hard to find an aspect of our lives that remains untouched.
This transformation is particularly evident in the way AI has impacted consumer interactions. From customizing content on social media platforms to personalizing the online shopping experience, AI has become a pivotal force working quietly yet powerfully in the background.
The debate isn't about whether AI will reshape society—because it already is—but how we can collectively utilize it to maximize the best outcomes. Arguably, no region is more active in this debate than the Asia-Pacific. With an immense appetite for technology investments and rapidly growing AI deployment, the region is at the center of this push for AI-enabled progress. In fact, a survey by IDC found that 70% of respondents in the region were either exploring the potential of or actively investing in generative AI, dwarfing the 46% of respondents from North America and only slightly below the 76% of participants across Europe, Middle East, and Africa.
However, this does not signal any certainties, and it would be a grave error to believe that the Asia-Pacific's bright future with AI is a given. The region's growing and youthful population underscores the need—and potential—to develop human-centric AI-empowered business models.
Indeed, the 2023 Gartner Hype Cycle™ for Artificial Intelligence (AI) prescribes a deliberate investment strategy. The consultancy urges organizations to pay close attention to two aspects on the path toward more powerful AI systems.
The first group consists of innovations that will be fueled by generative AI. These cover content discovery, creation, authenticity, and regulations. Generative AI can also automate human work and customer and employee experiences. Meanwhile, the other group comprises innovations that will drive advances in generative AI and could look like causal AI or foundation models. Understanding how these breakthroughs could be leveraged will be a key factor for organizations all across the Asia Pacific.
Navigating choppy waters
Much like a seasoned sailor navigating uncharted waters, enterprises across the Asia-Pacific are hoisting their sails to catch the winds of innovation amid AI's growing influence on the business environment. But this journey isn't just about adopting new tools; it's more like a strategic odyssey.
Projections by IDC underscore this relationship between business and AI. For instance, it forecasts that by 2026, about 65% of regional organizations will seamlessly integrate AI across business technology categories.
But standing in the way is the talent gap, emphasizing the importance of nurturing AI skills. This will require broader commitments to building a capable workforce. Upskilling and reskilling initiatives will be critical, but so will having low-code tools to harness AI's true potential. Robust low-code solutions will be a key enabler in breaking down traditional barriers to entry and empowering a broader spectrum of professionals to participate in AI-driven transformation actively.
Businesses across the region will also need to be agile in the face of public policy frameworks aimed at implementing guardrails for AI development. For instance, Vietnam has a national AI strategy, which mandates the creation of AI-specific laws and regulations by 2027. Thailand's National AI Strategy and Action Plan—launched in 2022—aims for an ethics-focused improvement of AI-related education and manpower capabilities. Meanwhile, Malaysia's National AI Roadmap 2021-2025 looks to create a self-sustaining AI innovation ecosystem anchored by Responsible AI principles. How do businesses equip themselves to navigate this? Just as traffic rules serve a dual purpose of maintaining order and safeguarding individuals, companies will need to strike a balance. They must leverage partners and experts at the forefront of AI integration to develop a clear-headed strategy.
A robust ecosystem via intelligent integration and automation
Establishing a robust data ecosystem at the offset is crucial to leveraging AI to propel businesses to new heights of speed and precision. Companies will need to be able to take stock of the following:
Data accuracy—It's been said countless times. Still, it bears repeating that AI is only as good as the data at its disposal. An intelligent strategy will enable businesses to aggregate data from disparate sources into a single source of truth. The right approach will resolve discrepancies, standardize data definitions, and provide an ongoing assurance of high data quality.
Data completeness—Businesses must also be able to determine whether data sets are sufficiently complete. Newer sample sizes can generate less accurate AI output than comparatively older data sets. This hampers predictive analytics and compliance and even exacerbates biases.
Process integrity—Process workflows also need to be logical and seamless if AI is to drive automation. While models can suggest optimal workflows, it's still up to leaders to test sequences and try to "break" a workflow with an unexpected condition. Due diligence upfront will minimize the risk of a process disruption that leaves stakeholders stranded.
Trust and security—Securing sensitive data, including personally identifiable information (PII), is vital to building trust among internal and external stakeholders—especially your customers. Look to ensure data access only to authorized systems and individuals and implement a data governance framework that strengthens accountability and compliance with company and regulatory standards.
The real work lies in ensuring digital infrastructure is lean and integrated. This will drive intelligent automation, full lifecycle API management, and new, innovative AI use cases.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of CDOTrends. Image credit: iStockphoto/Sasiistock
David Irecki, Boomi
David Irecki is the director of solution consulting in APJ at Boomi.