A growing number of business leaders are rethinking their artificial intelligence strategies after being blindsided by the true cost of running the technology. A new study of corporate leaders has found that 42% regard the operating costs of AI as 'largely invisible' – a discovery that has prompted half of the firms surveyed to scale back or pause further rollout of AI initiatives.
The reckoning comes as executives confront rising prices for a technology many had expected to remain cheap indefinitely. The study also reveals a stark gap between investment and commercial payoff: just 24% of businesses were able to say they had sold at least one technology as part of their products or services. Even among those that did, the broader picture is grim – 97% of UK patents fail to generate any commercial returns.
“Half of firms scale back AI as 42% of CEOs call operating costs 'largely invisible'.”
Part of the problem, according to the research by Cynozure, is that under two-fifths of AI leaders currently visualise the impacts of the technology on their firms in terms of currency. Without a clear financial lens, many bosses have taken a long time to recognise that the technology may not be yielding the benefits they had assumed. The study notes a general tendency among corporate leaders to over-estimate the effectiveness of their firms' innovation.
The results suggest that the initial rush to adopt AI, driven by hopes of transformative gains, is giving way to a more cautious – and costly – reality. As more companies scale back, the question is whether the technology’s promised returns will ever justify its mounting expenses.