Generative AI (GenAI) has now become the most overused phrase in business technology, but do you even know what it means? Or how you can use it to better your business? Generative AI exploded across all industries starting in November 2022, but how can you adopt it if you don’t know the benefits it can provide you or how it can be integrated?
We hear our clients ask “How are you using GenAI?” and simply put we’re using it the same way they are; experimentally. We believe that anyone who says otherwise is simply not telling the whole truth. We’re here to explain why.
We view the definition of GenAI as new models made of neural networks that take what old models once did, based on prompts and dialogue identifying patterns and structures, then generating newer data that resembles (but does not repeat) old data. This can be for all file types:
- Text
- Image
- Video
- Audio
- Structured
- Code
- And more
Simply put, GenAI is a way to create new from old ways of using data. The catch is that it assumes not only that you have a conglomeration of aggregate data, but also the capabilities, money, time, and resources to generate new insights.
Is it “new”? No, as it uses data science techniques to perform tasks a human otherwise could.
Is it ubiquitous? Yes, many business cases across all industries can be answered by GenAI.
Is there a risk? Yes, as it’s often publicly accessible and fed data to better train upon.
Is it costly? Yes, it requires a lot of technical skill, computing scale, and cost of licensing.
Is it helpful? Yes, it has eased content creation, software dev, and even medicine. It helps to both automate and accelerate business processes.
What does it take to get there?
At Liberty, when it comes to Data & Analytics, our practice takes the time to assess all firms on their maturity against a scale ranging from that of siloed Excel reports to predictive analytics being commercialized products for Data as a Service (DaaS). As we often focus on mid-market wholesale/distributors/retailers, the answers vary. From an M&A perspective, we get many inquiries on how to support the Portfolios with GenAI as a topic, but rarely does that come with a full understanding of how to go from Microsoft Excel 2003 dependent to GenAI automation and reporting.
To appropriately reach the age of GenAI, you first must assess your current maturity in analytical capabilities:
- People
- Processes
- Technology
- Data
- Governance
These metrics allow us to assess not only current state-to-future-state reporting and analytic capabilities, but also the organizational maturity, the ability to scale and/or acquire more business, and most importantly the ability to adapt DaaS mentality where you commercialize how you aggregate data and use it for profit. This assists in paying down the costs for data personnel, data storage, and data computing overall.
The sad truth is that the percentage of companies prepared to do this is not currently measured in aggregate due to the newness of the technology and the interpretation of the technology. Forbes writes on GenAI that, “Its emergence has also altered market dynamics. Major tech companies are now producing and selling ready-to-use foundation models and GenAI to other businesses, which use these tools to improve or develop products for tech-savvy customers.” This is to say that if you weren’t technologically focused on data, analytics, reporting, machine learning, or Large Language Models (LLMs) a couple of years ago, then you may have already fallen behind the power curve.
Furthermore, Gartner believes that “By 2028, more than 50% of enterprises that have built large AI models from scratch will abandon their efforts due to costs, complexity and technical debt in their deployments.” If that is the case, then any privately held firm should be thinking about their retention or hold metrics for maturity for a 5-7-year sell starting yesterday. We will let that sink in.
How Does GenAI Change the Way Your Business Operates?
GenAI is industry agnostic. However, there are specific business use case solutions created to solve your industry problems. As for those who are totally agnostic:
- Forecasting & Pricing Optimization: analyze historical sales data and market trends in real time to forecast demand and offer competitive pricing
- Predictive Maintenance: implement algorithms to sensor data and equipment logs to enable proactive maintenance planning and optimize asset utilization
- Image and Speech Recognition: utilize AI/ML models to analyze images, videos, or audio data to improve efficiency, enhance user experiences, and provide insights across different domains
- Chatbots and Virtual Assistants: deploy AI-powered chatbots to automate customer support, answer frequently asked questions, provide personalized assistance, and enhance customer satisfaction
Then there are the more targeted solutions:
- Manufacturing & Distribution:
- Supply chain and production optimization
- Quality control and defect detection
- Robotics/AGVs and warehouse automation
- Healthcare:
- Remote patient monitoring
- Voice-assisted transcription and clinical documentation
- Automated scheduling, workflows, and medical records management
- Software:
- Automated code review, deployment, and release management
- Bug tracking and issue resolution
- Customer onboarding, training, and subscription management
- Logistics:
- Intelligent route planning and optimization
- Real-time shipment tracking and visibility
- Autonomous vehicles and drones
- Financial services:
- Credit scoring and risk assessment
- Fraud detection and prevention
- Algorithmic trading and market prediction
- Consumer:
- Brand/product sentiment analysis
- Content personalization and ad-targeting optimization
- Virtual try-on and augmented reality
And many more…Just take the time to google “[your use case]” and “.ai” or “.io” and you’ll probably be pleasantly surprised by the returns.
What should be on your business technology roadmap?
Often, when we get past the Chief Information/Technology/Data/Analytics Officer, and get to the rest of the C-suite or the board, we find that the stakeholder conversation changes rapidly. It’s not architecture, but a dollar sign that becomes the hurdle. It’s never easy to assess any data and analytics solution, as they come with so much variability, but overall that’s a future of the business problem. The current state business problem is survivability and keeping their edge. The assessment of all data and analytics maturity provides you with exactly that picture of where you stand with the competition.
We take the time to conduct the due diligence appropriate to all parties who need, touch, and develop the data. We do the research per industry and market space to know what’s really necessary, applicable, or even scalable. We do thorough assessments based on criteria we’ve gained in decades of industry work and comparison to provide you with solutions, partners, and budget allocation you can trust.
There is no better time to start thinking about how to leapfrog the competition by a generation than right now due to the availability of GenAI.
Liberty Can Position You to Leverage Emerging Technology
At Liberty, we position ourselves as thought leaders regarding how companies should be positioning themselves to leverage AI; more specifically, regarding Supply Chain and Manufacturing business functions.
Our approach to GenAI is no different than any other SaaS, as many GenAI tools have built themselves upon the same business framework. We partner with those leaders in the space, we assess based on the client’s immediate needs and maturity to scale, and we advise appropriately on the best-fit solution. From end to end, we speak the language of technology, data, and business to ensure that all stakeholders are on the same page throughout delivery and implementation. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
With the right team of experienced professionals, GenAI can make your business better. At Liberty Advisor Group, we know there is no one-size-fits-all large-scale GenAI solution as every business is different. We do not want a failure in understanding key differences in the use cases of GenAI to be a factor for our clients. All the tools to get your business on to the next generation are available. Every business should now be positioned to evaluate its scalability to the future. If the GenAI of today can answer the business needs, then imagine what the GenAI of 2-3 years from now can do.
Liberty Advisor Group’s Data Analytics Experience
At Liberty Advisor Group, we help our clients unlock the power of data through decades of IT and Data Analytics experience. We are experts in Data Analytics strategies for complex problems and help clients across every industry that present technology and software challenges in need of a Data Strategy.
Let Liberty Advisor Group guide you through the process and identify the best Data Science approach for your business.
