According to a recent report, India ranks third, after Singapore and Hong-Kong, in the Asia Pacific region on artificial intelligence readiness, according to a study. India is one of the few global economies to have implemented and perfected automated processes across many different industries.
However, the country ranks low on dynamism and innovation, impacting its business readiness.
Indian AI start-ups are constrained by the fact that most small and mid-sized businesses cannot afford to adopt or implement AI systems, the report noted.
Another article noted that in terms of innovation, India’s AI ecosystem is held back by the lack of existing skilled professionals who can develop innovative AI solutions.
Other key findings of the study included:
- 76% of companies in India feel the shortage of skilled professionals is slowing down AI adoption
- Indian consumers are largely aware of AI technologies and their benefits, thanks in part to entertainment-driven products and services.
- India is among the most prepared economies in terms of government readiness.
In terms of sentiment, positive outlooks towards AI are highest in Thailand and India – two economies in which consumers interact primarily with AI technologies geared towards entertainment (home assistants, geolocation applications, etc.) – and lowest in Singapore and Malaysia – two economies that are increasingly confronted to more intrusive facets of AI, such as AI-enabled surveillance, another report noted.
India’s AI start-ups
Indian AI start-ups are constrained by the fact that most small and mid-sized businesses cannot afford to adopt or implement AI systems, said the report.
Currently, India leads the way in terms of a number of AI start-ups despite having moderate scores for all other indicators suggesting that much more could be accomplished if companies were to have the business environment they need for their innovative potential to flourish.
It is worth noting that Malaysia ranks highest in terms of venture capital availability and second-to-last in a number of AI start-ups, indicating a clear disconnect between business potential and business capacity.
The same can be said of Hong Kong, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines, where there is much room for growth. This is not the case in India and Australia, where capital and investments are much more aligned with actual enterprise creation.
Indians confident in AI
Different research by the same company noted that 64% of Indians confident that AI will make their lives easier and society smarter.
According to a report from September 2018, it was revealed that and the world’s leading CRM company unveiled findings from new research.
The study explored consumer trust and understanding of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the opportunities for business and government to grow knowledge, re-skill and prepare consumers for the future.
Amongst the markets surveyed, the results reveal that Indian consumers are well aware of AI (78%) and India emerged as the second market (with Indonesia at 68%) with the highest positive outlook towards AI (65%).
The majority also believe that AI has the ability to help make society smarter (60%) in the future. Most Indians surveyed (64%) also feel AI will transform the employee space, by providing freedom to work, creating interesting jobs, and many see AI as a way to make society smarter (60%) and life more convenient (58%).
There is a clear correlation between understanding and outlook. As AI permeates the enterprise, it is undoubtedly altering consumer spaces and preferences where respondents who reported a higher level of understanding of AI (78%) were statistically more likely to have a positive outlook towards AI products and services.
54% think the more they understand and are made aware of AI, the more they will trust it. And, with 65% of respondents feeling positive about AI, it’s now the role of businesses to demystify AI for consumers encouraging adoption and educating customers on its benefits.
In addition to overall AI awareness, the study explored the real-world applications of AI including robo-advisors, content recommendations, chatbots, product recommendations, and voice assistants.
Consumer trust and awareness vary dramatically across different AI applications, with 86% of Indians opting for AI over humans to recommend content.
The study also reveals that Indians are open to AI managing and optimizing their finances (59%). Additionally, the study found that there is a general openness towards interacting with chatbots (63%) and awareness of voice assistants is the highest amongst all AI applications (83%).
