A new survey conducted by global strategy consulting firm Altman Solon revealed that approximately one-in-four US technology companies are utilizing generative AI tools to augment software development. The study indicates significant growth potential for these AI tools in various business functions over the upcoming year.
Altman Solon surveyed 292 senior technology executives and interviewed a panel of industry experts to gain insights into the opportunities that generative AI presents in businesses. The survey results suggest a strong appetite for generative AI tools across multiple business functions, despite the currently limited availability of off-the-shelf and customizable solutions.
According to the survey, software development emerged as the leading business function for generative AI adoption at 22%, trailed by marketing (11%), customer service (8%), and product development (6%). As for future generative AI adoption, estimated adoption rates reach nearly 80% or more in software development, marketing, and customer service sectors, with product development boasting a 62% anticipated adoption rate.
Josh Zaretsky, Altman Solon Partner, commented on the survey's findings, stating, “There is clearly a strong demand for new generative AI tools that will grow exponentially over the next year. As the market matures, it will be important for AI providers to develop more easy-to-use and customizable solutions, which customers have come to expect from SaaS and other more established technology applications.”
The survey demonstrates that off-the-shelf solutions and custom applications built on an out-of-the-box model are equally in demand as the most popular development methods for generative AI tools. Among the surveyed companies, 70% of respondents opted for one of these two development models for their current or intended generative AI endeavors. The survey also found that companies employing SaaS tools were two to three times more likely to prefer out-of-the-box solutions, indicating a promising market for ready-to-use, enterprise-grade generative AI tools.
Altman Solon Partner Swope Fleming added, “The survey clearly shows that respondents would prefer deploying generative AI in the public cloud or in their providers’ environment rather than build their own infrastructure. This could be a new growth driver for cloud providers as adoption ramps up.”
According to the survey, enterprise preferences lean toward outsourcing generative AI app development and opting to deploy generative AI models on a public cloud of their choice. Nearly half of the respondents (48%) reported using generative AI on the cloud independently of their provider, while 32% were using their application providers' environment. Only 20% claimed to be using their own private infrastructure.
The organizations surveyed emphasized customization as the most crucial criterion for development and deployment decisions (62%), followed by deployment cost (55%) and scalability (52%). Although security was not among the top three decision-making criteria, 24% of the organizations surveyed still considered it most important. Those that prioritized security were more likely to deploy a private infrastructure, indicating a focus on security concerns.
In their March 2023 analysis of emerging enterprise use cases for generative AI, Altman Solon drew upon a panel of industry experts as well as survey data from 292 senior executives to evaluate preferences in developing and deploying enterprise-grade generative AI tools. The study also examined the key factors influencing the development and deployment of these AI tools. Participating respondents hailed from US-based businesses of varying sizes. So far, Altman Solon has released two insights on AI enterprise deployment and AI as a business transformation application, with more to be unveiled in the coming months.
As companies continue to integrate generative AI tools into their business operations, no-code platforms like AppMaster aid in boosting efficiency by offering a range of features to simplify the app development process. With its innovative no-code platform, AppMaster provides an accessible and cost-effective solution for businesses of all sizes.
