AI, GenAI emerge top priorities for Indian CIOs: Lenovo study

Artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI (GenAI) have emerged as top priorities for chief information officers (CIOs) in India, according to a study by global technology company Lenovo.

The "CIO Playbook 2024 – It’s all about Smarter AI" report on AI adoption in Asia-Pacific (AP) done by IDC and commissioned by Lenovo showed that organisations in AP are planning to increase AI spending by 45% in 2024 compared with 2023.

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The report also noted the massive shift in CIO priorities from last year, with AI topping the list. Notably, across AP, revenue and profit growth have shifted from the top priority in 2023 to number three in 2024, while customer experience and satisfaction have surged two spots to come in the top two priorities. This underscores a strategic shift towards cutting-edge innovations and a customer-centric approach in the evolving business landscape.

However, divergence emerged between business leaders and CIOs on AI technologies. Business leaders want to prioritise GenAI to enhance customer experience and drive outcomes, while CIOs express cautious optimism, as per the report. Ranking GenAI as the fourth tech priority, CIOs are prioritising AI technologies that address security, infrastructure, and talent considerations.

Amit Luthra, MD – India, Lenovo ISG, said, “The AI Playbook echoes what we have been hearing from the customers. CIOs in India are most confident about AI, with 95% expressing certainty that it will create a competitive advantage, and 57% of them consider it to be a game changer for their organisations.”

According to the report, in India, the primary use cases for emerging technologies such as GenAI include risk and fraud detection in the banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) sector.

The Indian manufacturing sector leverages AI-enabled predictive maintenance systems, aiding enterprises in autonomous real-time monitoring of equipment and anomalies. High-performance compute platforms (55%) and automation of digital infrastructure (39%) are expected to be areas with the highest spending in 2024.

CIOs report that the top technology challenge for AI is GenAI's reliance on extensive datasets, a resource most organisations lack. In terms of business challenges, Job security and lack of requisite AI skills top concerns for IT employees in mature markets. Notably, India exhibited the highest job security within the region.