Tata Consultancy Services has published its AI for Business Study Report. This study contains perspectives from nearly 1,300 senior leaders from 24 countries, making it one of the largest surveys of its kind. This comprehensive research report from the TCS Thought Leadership Institute reveals a positive sentiment around AI from most executives. 

The majority said they are optimistic about the potential impact of AI on their business. Most senior leaders also believe that AI will continue to assist and augment human activities in the next few years, not replace them in the workplace. And while the daily use of GenAI by employees is expected to increase, human creativity and strategic thinking will remain essential for competitive differentiation. 

The study investigates the following questions:

• How do CEOs and other senior decision-makers worldwide respond to AI's transformative potential?
• How are they managing their AI strategy?
• As the pace of artificial intelligence accelerates, is their organisation AI-ready?
• Do they understand the potential value of AI for their business?
• Are they balancing those opportunities with the risk?
• Will they manage AI implementations in-house or work with a technology partner to chart their unique approach to AI?
• AI can make companies more productive and profitable. But can it also make them better?

The report states that the majority of executives believe AI's impact on their business model will be greater or at least equal to earlier disruptive technologies. 54% believe that its impact will be greater or equal to the internet, while 59% state that the impact of AI on business will be more significant to or equal to smartphones. Over 57% of global executives are optimistic about the potential of AI to transform their businesses. 

The research also analysed how organisations are using AI right now. 59% of corporate functions have AI implementations in-process or completed while 34% departments are planning AI implementations. However, very few companies are fully leveraging AI as a transformative factor for their businesses, and most companies still have a long way to go. 

The study identified three top challenges for AI implementation. They include current IT infrastructure, customer expectations and IT service providers. At the same time, Generative AI brings its own unique set of challenges, such as security and privacy. 

The study remarks that with tightening IT spending budgets, demonstrating the ROI of AI implementations is essential. However, without adequate KPIs for AI-enabled operations, proving ROI is challenging. 

Although the discussion around the future of jobs continues, most executives say they will rely heavily on human creativity and thinking to drive competitive advantage for the foreseeable future. The study found that two-thirds of executives believe human creativity or strategic thinking will remain their company's competitive advantage.

The report made 6 recommendations for turning AI's potential into performance. It showcased TCS's AI methodology and also included success stories of real-world AI implementations. 

Full Report.