Generative AI: The Excitement, the Challenges, and the Rush to Experiment  

Challenge #1: Pressure to act quickly and concerns about risk

One of the biggest challenges facing businesses today is the pressure to act quickly in order to stay ahead of the competition. This can be especially challenging when it comes to new and emerging technologies like GenAI that are still nascent.

On the one hand, businesses want to be early adopters of GenAI in order to reap the potential benefits. On the other hand, they are concerned about the risks involved, or making poor decisions due to a lack of understanding of GenAI technology.

The implications of accidently exposing competitive or customer data are now well documented, but some risks are much subtler as we go deeper into this technology. How do organisations manage accuracy at deployment and on an ongoing basis when we see models ‘drifting’ in terms of answer quality. Where does the inaccuracy arise from? The Foundation Model, the internal training data, the process of model development and training?

GenAI is a complex and rapidly evolving field, and it can be difficult for businesses to find and retain the talent they need. Additionally, GenAI solutions often require significant cloud computing resources, which can be a burden for smaller businesses to design, procure and manage successfully.

Microsoft recently announced its third quarter earnings, driving a spectacular 10 per cent jump in asset value. But dig a little deeper on the detail and we note a 66 per cent increase in enterprise clients for Microsoft worldwide. These clients need expertise in a specialised and rapidly evolving area of technology and there simply aren’t the skills to help address this need.

Challenge #3: Overwhelmed by choice

Finally, businesses can be overwhelmed by the number of different GenAI solutions available.

There are a variety of different platform providers, proprietary models, open source models, and marketplaces like Hugging Face. Faced with a wide variety of choices,it can be difficult for businesses to know which solution is right for them, and they may end up making poor choices due to a lack of understanding of the different options available.

A recent report by Forrester Research* found that 70 per cent of businesses are struggling to choose the right GenAI solutions. The report also found that the top three challenges facing businesses are:

1. Lack of understanding of GenAI technology and its capabilities
2. Difficulty in evaluating and comparing different GenAI solutions
3. Lack of expertise in implementing and managing GenAI solutions

We are seeing early adopters reconsider their GenAI foundation model choices as they realise the potential production costs and recognise other Large Language Models may be sufficient. However, this brings added complexity for internal teams to manage. We believe the trend will continue with multiple GenAI solutions based on specific and generic use cases being implemented for clients.

* Forrester Research report: “The State of Generative AI in 2023: A Forrester Wave Report” by Stephanie Liu et al. (2023)

Conclusion

Despite the challenges, the potential benefits of GenAI are clear. Businesses that are able to successfully implement GenAI solutions are likely to gain a significant competitive advantage.

However, businesses need to be aware of the challenges involved and take steps to mitigate them. This includes developing a clear understanding of GenAI technology, partnering for the necessary skills and resources, and working together against the back drop of the organisations strategic imperatives to carefully evaluate the different GenAI solutions available.

By taking these steps, businesses can increase their chances of success with GenAI and reap the many benefits that this technology has to offer.

Read More