The era of generative AI is upon us, and it promises to reshape industries, drive innovation, and redefine economies worldwide. According to PwC, AI is predicted to contribute a staggering $15.7 trillion to the global GDP by 2030, making it the biggest commercial opportunity in today’s fast-paced economy.
In South Africa, the interest in AI has surged over the years, with major corporations and businesses alike recognising its potential to enhance productivity, improve customer experiences, and foster growth. A recent IBM study found that 54% of African CEOs surveyed identified customer experience as their highest business priority, while 46% recognised productivity or profitability as key to achieving their business goals.
However, while the enthusiasm for AI is evident, local organisations face numerous barriers as they race to modernise and adopt generative AI. These obstacles include market and regulatory factors, workforce readiness, skills gaps, and concerns around ethics and governance.
Overcoming Barriers and Integrating AI Successfully
To unlock the full potential of AI, businesses need to shift from an “AI plus” mindset to an “AI first” approach. CEOs in Africa must establish and implement clear and consistent standards concerning the utilisation of AI across all strategic focus areas. This will determine the level of investment and, ultimately, an organisation’s success in a rapidly advancing digital economy.
The key to unlocking the full potential of AI lies in understanding what the business wants to achieve. These goals must be coupled with a robust strategy and an understanding of what needs to change to make the vision a reality. Every leader in the chain of command needs to assess where work can be streamlined and augmented—and how generative AI can be used to deliver greater value every day.
Cultivating Collaborative Partnerships
Partnership ecosystems, which include technology and systems integrators, consultants, and software vendors, are critical in filling gaps in an organisation’s skillset, creating robust data strategies, or guiding organisational change. This is particularly important for SMEs seeking to adopt AI.
One exemplary organisation employing the power of partnerships is Umbono Cloud Services – a South African cloud and automation company. The organisation has utilised IBM watsonx and IBM Discovery to build a Multi-Modal Conversations User Interface Platform, a natural language intelligent assistant that can assist businesses with customer service, online purchasing, booking appointments, and many more functions.
Ethics, Governance, and Trust in AI
As more organisations start to harness the power of AI, they must prioritise ethics, governance, and trust to ensure the deployment of responsible AI. According to IBM research, investments in AI ethics are rising, growing from 3% of AI spending in 2018 to nearly 9% in 2025.
“Integrating AI in business operations has become a business imperative,” said Pommie Lutchman, Conversational AI & Bot Evangelist and Exclusive Expert Consultant to Umbono Cloud Services. “AI offers businesses significant benefits by streamlining customer service operations, enhancing user engagement, reducing operational costs, improving efficiency and providing personalised experiences at scale. But, all of these fall away if AI is not implemented responsibly or lacks trust.”
Addressing the AI Skills Gap
The growing demand for automation in various sectors underscores the pressing need to address the skills gap and equip the local workforce with the requisite capabilities. Over the next three years, it is estimated that about 40% of the organisational workforce will need to be reskilled in AI and automation.
To address this skills shortage, IBM has committed to democratising AI education and has launched ambitious initiatives to train two million learners, focusing on underrepresented communities, in AI over the same period. This will be achieved by collaborating with key university partners to deliver AI training and generative AI coursework through IBM SkillsBuild, which offers enhanced access to AI education and in-demand technical roles.
The Future of AI
Looking ahead, AI is poised to drive profound transformations across industries and societies. Emerging trends such as the rise of enterprise AI, increased use of open-source AI models, the rapid expansion of APIs, and increased focus on AI safety and ethics are set to shape the future of AI. As global nations prioritise AI as a strategic asset, it is critical that South African businesses keep abreast of the latest developments to remain competitive and relevant in a digital-first global economy.
The journey of adopting AI in South Africa is marked by immense potential but also accompanied by numerous challenges. By embracing a strategic approach, fostering collaboration, prioritising ethics and governance, addressing the skills gap, and staying attuned to emerging trends, local organisations can harness the transformative power of AI to drive sustainable growth, foster innovation, and propel the country towards a brighter future.
By Ria Pinto, General Manager and Technology Leader, IBM South Africa
