Governance, Strategy Needed in Enterprise Generative AI Adoption

Education is a first-wave adopter of AI, as momentum builds in enterprises.

The current wave of popularity for generative AI is just "scratching the surface." The real impact will be felt in enterprises — including education — which, over the next seven years, will see growth in the hundreds of billions of dollars, according to a new market analysis, "Generative AI Business Outcomes: Identifying Enterprise Commercial Opportunities."

According to technology market research firm ABI Research, generative AI "will add more than US$450 billion to the enterprise market across twelve different verticals over the next seven years." One of those is education, which is an early adopter.

Reece Hayden, Senior Analyst at ABI Research, said: "Content-heavy verticals like marketing and education are already seeing disruption across a range of job roles in the first wave of adoption."

"Generative AI already has hundreds of use cases across these enterprise verticals," ABI noted. "But accuracy, performance, and enterprise readiness will mean that use cases will come in three distinct waves. Advertisers are bringing projects to market more quickly, social media managers can deploy content more effectively with greater localization, and teachers are already developing a more personalized curriculum."

The first wave of adoption, according to ABI, has an internal focus, such as augmenting employee productivity.

In the second wave, enterprises will start building products and services around AI. In the third and most significant wave, AI will be used to automate and optimize processes.

ABI noted that in the present wave, a lack of strategy and governance as individual units within organizations look to find ways to integrate AI into their operations in "isolated deployments" will lead to fragmentation between business processes.

"Avoiding this requires a more careful and measured approach to enterprise deployment with a central corporate strategy on generative AI usage, including employee usage, governance, legal approach, and expected business outcomes," according to ABI.

ABI's Hayben said: "Building a framework to support enterprise generative AI deployment is critical. For operational consistency, enterprises should adopt a common platform that includes foundation models, low/no code tools, guardrails, and curated data sets. This framework can then allow different business units to build highly contextualized, use case-specific models and applications."

The findings were part of ABI's report "Generative AI Business Outcomes: Identifying Enterprise Commercial Opportunities." The full report can be purchased for $4,500.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


Featured

  • AI-powered individual working calmly on one side and a burnt-out person slumped over a laptop on the other

    AI's Productivity Gains Come at a Cost

    A recent academic study found that as companies adopt AI tools, they're not just streamlining workflows — they're piling on new demands. Researchers determined that "AI technostress" is driving burnout and disrupting personal lives, even as organizations hail productivity gains.

  • red brick school building with a large yellow "AI" sign above its main entrance

    New National Academy for AI Instruction to Provide Free AI Training for Educators

    In an effort to "transform how artificial intelligence is taught and integrated into classrooms across the United States," the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), in partnership with Microsoft, OpenAI, Anthropic, and the United Federation of Teachers, is launching the National Academy for AI Instruction, a $23 million initiative that will provide access to free AI training and curriculum for all AFT members, beginning with K-12 educators.

  • three silhouetted education technology leaders with thought bubbles containing AI-related icons

    Ed Tech Leaders Rank Generative AI as Top Tech Priority

    In a recent CoSN survey, an overwhelming majority of ed tech leaders (94%) said they see AI as having a positive impact on education. Respondents ranked generative AI as their top tech priority, with 80% reporting their districts have gen AI initiatives underway, or plan to in the current school year.

  • lightbulb

    Register Now for Tech Tactics in Education: Overcoming Roadblocks to Innovation

    Tech Tactics in Education will return on Sept. 25 with the conference theme "Overcoming Roadblocks to Innovation." Registration for the fully virtual event is now open.