Generative AI (GenAI) has made the Arab Gulf region sit up and take notice. Even to non-technologists, AI is now making its promise of eventually surpassing the human capacity for initiative and creativity. As of December, the GCC GenAI market was projected to be worth US$430 million last year and rise to US$2 billion by 2030 — a CAGR of almost 25 per cent. Drawing on estimates for overall regional AI spend, we can say that for every US$8 spent on AI in 2030, US$1 of it will be invested in GenAI. These figures suggest the hype is alive and well and will remain so for the foreseeable future. That means technology and business leaders have some decisions to make.
As they gather to make their plans, there is some good news for these stakeholders. They have a template to follow because GenAI is not the first technology to put decision-makers in a bind, caught between risk management on one side and a runaway adoption trend on the other. Cloud computing was met with the same mix of enthusiasm and trepidation in the mid-2000s, but flash forward two decades and it saved countless businesses from ruin during the COVID pandemic. So let us learn some lessons from cloud migration and apply them to GenAI.Â
1. An operational investment
GenAI, like cloud computing before it, has an appeal that spans industries and scales. From the smallest retailer to the largest telecoms company, it has something to offer. Before cloud computing, any IT investment was in the form of significant capital-intensive outlays. But over time, the cloud drew in more and more businesses that recognised the advantages of more sustainable operational expenditure. Offered as a cloud-native service, GenAI has the potential to attract adopters in a similar way — as an opportunity to convert investments from CapEx to OpEx, while still gaining benefits like enhanced productivity and lower costs.
2. A revitalisation of security Â
GenAI ingests data at a monumental rate. Its success depends upon it. But GCC regulators are clear on where, when, and how data can be used. Privacy laws in Gulf states are consumer-centric, and ecommerce business models are now so common that PCI DSS will also apply in most cases. And then there are international standards such as GDPR. The question of data security is no longer abstract. It is a core business function. ServiceNow research in conjunction with Opinium shows data security to be a top concern among EMEA consumers when deciding whether or not to engage with a brand.
This focus on the safety of data reflects the early days of cloud adoption. Technology and business leaders dwelt long on the issue of trust and devised ways of amassing and analysing the required data to add value while still reassuring customers of its safety. They resolved these issues primarily by partnering with providers that gave the right guarantees and commitments to give confidence to cloud adopters. GenAI’s adoption is in the nascent stages but lessons from cloud computing are clear. Data management and security must be at the top of the corporate agenda.
3. Invest wisely
Cloud migrators had plans. They drew up roadmaps that included every prerequisite — skills, vendors, technologies — and every step taken. Some cloud adopters failed to accomplish their implementation goals while others were more successful. The difference between the two was having the right skills in play. It is well known that the GCC faces a shortage in STEM skills, especially in AI. But those AI skills will be critical in understanding data lifecycles, AI regulations, and other areas. Managing data for the purposes of training a large-language model is a tricky proposition. But once the right resources are in place, organisations will experience smoother transitions.
4. Contrast and compare
When a trend takes hold, it is natural to expect a rapid time to value once you board the train. The hype cycle goes from initial anticipation to early adoption to widespread caution. That caution, however, can lead to some being the last to board, when all the good seats are taken. No organisation wants to be in that position. A range of surveys suggest GenAI is in the early stages but that will not mean that there are no enterprises wringing their hands, anxious to move.
Just as for the cloud, it pays to be well-informed on GenAI because misinformation is bountiful. In its early days, the cloud was thought to be less cost-effective, less secure, and less reliable than legacy, on premises infrastructure. Today, this comparison has reversed itself. However, we are now in a position to evaluate GenAI by looking at its various proven use cases. It is capable of idea generation, taking part in brainstorming just as humans can. It can rate, rank, and recommend, summarising huge data sources into useful reports and journals and giving advice backed by chains of logic, much as human consultants can do.
GenAI can also generate content for us — draft emails, social posts, and responses to IT ticketing-service requests. Organisations should review the proven use cases to find out whether their individual objectives align with what has already been achieved.
In your own time
GenAI’s adoption journey is no different to any other. Having addressed the similarities here between the new tech and cloud migration, I hope I have given you a strong foundation for your 2024 expedition into this exciting new area. It helps to familiarise your teams with foundational AI before branching out into GenAI and its predictive intelligence, statistical analysis, and natural-language understanding capabilities. As ever, rather than trying to figure out where to incorporate the latest and greatest, ask what business problem you are trying to solve first, and then figure out where GenAI fits. If you move prudently, you can change the game and win the game in a single stroke.
