Technology has always played a critical role in driving innovation, and the latest report from Accenture suggests that the cloud, metaverse and artificial intelligence (AI) are set to transform the way people work and live. The report, entitled “When Atoms Meet Bits: The Foundations of Our New Reality,” explores how technology is paving the way for a new future for business, as the physical and digital worlds become inextricably linked.
According to Paul Daugherty, Group Chief Executive of Accenture Technology, “the next decade will be defined by three technological megatrends – the cloud, the metaverse and AI – which, collectively, will dramatically close the gap between the digital and physical world.”
One of the key findings of the report is that generative AI will have a significant impact on the way businesses operate. Almost all executives surveyed agreed that generative AI will unleash creativity and innovation, and will usher in a new era of business intelligence. Accenture estimates that up to 40% of all work hours will be supported by AI-based languages. Among business leaders, 98% of respondents agreed that AI models will play an important role in their organization’s strategies over the next three to five years.
However, Rui Barros, Managing Director of Accenture Portugal, responsible for the Technology area, reveals that “although generative AI will have a far-reaching impact, leaders must now bet on a profound transformation, since it will require significant investments in data, people, and custom templates to satisfy the specific needs of each organization.”
The report identifies four key trends that are key to unlocking this new shared reality:
Generative AI: Advances human capability as a co-pilot, partner or creative consultant. It is predicted that generative AI will unleash significant creativity and innovation and usher in a new era of business intelligence.
Digital Identity: The ability to authenticate digital users and assets is now seen by 85% of executives as a strategic business imperative, not just a technical issue.
My data, your data, our data: Breaking down data silos and modernizing databases is essential to reach the full potential of AI, according to 90% of executives.
A frontier without limits: Science and technology are accelerating the advancement of each other. Respondents to the survey believe they can begin to unlock the world’s great challenges.
These four trends are all converging to create a new shared reality where the physical and digital worlds are seamlessly integrated. This new reality will have a profound impact on the way we live, work, and play. Businesses that are able to embrace these trends will be well-positioned to succeed in the years to come.
key takeaways from the Accenture Technology Vision 2023 report:
- The rise of the sentient enterprise: The next generation of enterprise technology will be increasingly intelligent and autonomous, capable of learning and adapting to changing conditions in real time. This will enable businesses to make better decisions faster, improve customer experiences, and operate more efficiently.
- The democratization of AI: AI is no longer the exclusive domain of large enterprises. Thanks to advances in cloud computing and open-source software, AI is now accessible to businesses of all sizes. This is opening up new opportunities for innovation and disruption across a wide range of industries.
- The metaverse: The metaverse is a virtual world that combines elements of gaming, social media, and online commerce. It is still in its early stages of development, but it has the potential to revolutionize the way we interact with each other and the world around us.
- The rise of the creator economy: The creator economy is a new economic ecosystem that is built on the exchange of goods and services created by individuals. This includes everything from online courses and tutorials to music and video content. The creator economy is growing rapidly, and it is providing new opportunities for people to make a living from their creativity.
- The future of work: The nature of work is changing rapidly as a result of technological advances. Automation is displacing some jobs, while new technologies are creating new opportunities. The future of work will require workers to be more adaptable and have a wider range of skills.
- The sustainability imperative: Businesses are under increasing pressure to operate more sustainably. This is being driven by a number of factors, including consumer demand, government regulations, and investor expectations. Businesses that are able to reduce their environmental impact will be well-positioned to succeed in the years to come.
Foundation models have the potential to transform human-AI interaction. ChatGPT, for instance, can write poems and essays, debug code and answer complicated questions because it’s trained on billions of online examples. And it remembers previous conversations, so it can revise or elaborate on responses, making human-machine communication more sophisticated and natural.
However, even with natural language offering an easy-to-use interface, some software engineering knowledge is needed to successfully build applications around foundation models. Companies without those skill sets can still benefit from the technology, though. In the wake of OpenAI and others turning their models into platforms, a wave of companies have started offering new B2B products and services.
Ultimately, AI operations will shift from building models to building on top of models. Talent with the skills to take foundation models, adapt them to business needs and integrate them into applications will become increasingly important.
