Beyond the hype: How to unlock tangible business value from generative AI

The rise of generative AI: Generative AI (genAI) has emerged as a transformative technology, but enterprises are struggling to realize its full potential and achieve expected returns on investment.

• The public release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT in November 2022 sparked unprecedented hype around genAI, comparable to the advent of the public internet.
• According to Gartner, genAI has recently entered the “trough of disillusionment,” indicating that businesses are not seeing the anticipated value and ROI.

Challenges in implementation: Organizations face difficulties in identifying and prioritizing the most effective genAI use cases to drive rapid ROI and business value.

• The sheer number of potential applications makes it challenging for decision-makers to determine the best starting point.
• Unlike traditional technology adoption, AI deployment is often driven by C-suite executives rather than IT departments, leading to a lack of clear direction on appropriate use cases.

Strategic approach to genAI adoption: To maximize the potential of genAI, organizations need to develop a clear strategy aligned with business goals and stakeholder input.

• IT departments should collaborate with C-suite executives and business units to identify use cases that advance specific business objectives.
• A fail-fast approach is recommended, quickly abandoning unsuccessful proofs of concept (POCs) and scaling those that show early promise.

High-impact genAI applications: Three key areas where enterprises are already seeing significant value from genAI implementation:

1. Enhancing cybersecurity: GenAI models can improve threat detection and response capabilities.
   • AI can accurately detect financial fraud and identify anomalous network activity.
   • GenAI can enrich and summarize security alerts, enabling IT admins to focus on addressing and preventing threats.
   • Automation of security policy creation is another valuable application.
2. Boosting productivity: GenAI can accelerate content and code creation when used in conjunction with human expertise.
   • Code copilots and intelligent document processing tools can generate initial drafts, saving time for employees.
   • Domain-specific, fine-tuned models can enhance productivity across various business functions.
3. Elevating customer experience: GenAI can significantly improve customer interactions and personalization.

• • Analysis of customer feedback using genAI can provide valuable insights.
  • Personalized chatbots can enhance customer engagement.
  • GenAI can enable tailored customer interactions based on individual preferences and history.
  • It’s crucial to extensively test and continuously train customer-facing genAI applications to ensure accuracy and quality.

Infrastructure considerations: Implementing genAI requires a robust and specialized infrastructure to support its computational demands.

• While a do-it-yourself approach to genAI infrastructure may seem appealing, it can be expensive and complex, requiring specialized expertise.
• Turnkey solutions like Nutanix’s GPT in a Box offer a full-stack, AI-ready infrastructure to help organizations quickly prove out use cases without the complexities of building from scratch.

Looking ahead: Balancing potential and practicality: As genAI continues to evolve, organizations must strike a balance between exploring its vast potential and focusing on practical, value-driven applications.

• The key to successful genAI implementation lies in aligning technological capabilities with specific business needs and goals.
• As more success stories emerge, we can expect to see a wider adoption of genAI across industries, potentially leading to new business models and transformative innovations.
• However, organizations must remain vigilant about ethical considerations, data privacy, and the potential societal impacts of widespread genAI adoption.