Is chasing the promise of generative AI causing companies to neglect other IT services? IBM seems to think so.
Big Blue claims that while IT leaders are focused on preparing their organizations for generative AI adoption, confidence in their IT team's ability to deliver basic services has declined.
This data is drawn from a study conducted by the IBM Institute for Business Value, which surveyed 2,500 C-level technology execs across 34 countries and 26 industries during the first calendar quarter of 2024.
IBM reports that fewer than half of the respondents believe their IT organization is effective in delivering basic services, compared to 69 percent from a survey in 2013. Among chief execs, that figure is 36 percent today, down from 64 percent previously, while for chief financial officers, the figures are 50 percent now, down from 60 percent before.
What might be causing this? The Armonk-based biz says that 43 percent of surveyed tech CxOs indicated that concerns about their IT infrastructure have increased over the past six months due to the focus on optimizing their infrastructure for generative AI.
The report highligths a disconnect between CEOs and the IT department, with three quarters of the former believing that their organization's digital infrastructure is ready to scale and "deliver value." However, only 16 percent of tech execs say they're confident their current cloud and data processing capabilities are ready to support generative AI, given the enormous demands it places on infrastructure, particularly during training.
Big Blue also says that, according to its research, just 29 percent of cloud IT assets and services are performing as required, with the remainder essentially representing tech debt accumulated over years of piecemeal technology implementations. It claims this is forcing organizations to divert energy and resources into maintaining and troubleshooting outdated systems, which they really ought to be addressing before diving into an AI transformation.
"Tech leaders today are grappling with multiple business demands, made even more complicated by the rise of generative AI. They must navigate the challenges of modernizing their IT infrastructure and scaling generative AI to support the business' core competitive advantage," claimed Mohamad Ali, Senior Vice President, IBM Consulting.
Some 58 percent of the CxOs quizzed by IBM say they are having difficulty filling key technology roles, with 54 percent blaming financial pressures for hindering their ability to invest in technology talent. Perhaps all the money is being spent on GPUs instead of hiring people with the right skills?
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Another finding is that 80 percent of CEOs surveyed held that transparency in their organization's use of generative AI is critical for fostering trust, yet only half say they are delivering on AI capabilities for explainability. Even fewer say they are delivering the ability to support privacy (46 percent), transparency (45 percent), and fairness (37 percent).
Yet all this seeming panic over being left behind in some sort of AI arms race may come to naught anyway. As The Register reported last month, all of the investment into AI over the past couple of years has so far resulted in little to show for it, with The Economist saying that AI technology has had "almost no economic impact."
Another study we reported on recently indicated that three out of four workers say AI tools have actually made them less productive while increasing their workload. Perhaps AI is really just a distraction, as some tech commentators are starting to suggest.
IBM's report, "6 blind spots tech leaders must reveal," can be downloaded here. ®