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Marrakech – Saad Toma, General Manager of IBM Middle East & Africa (MEA), delivered a keynote address on the transformative potential of generative AI at the main stage of GITEX Africa 2024 in Morocco today.
In his speech, Toma emphasized the crucial role that generative AI will play in reinventing the way businesses operate and drive success in the coming years.
Toma cited a recent IBM report which found that 75% of global CEOs believe the organization with the most advanced generative AI will have a significant advantage, and 43% plan to use the technology to inform strategic decisions.
“Companies worldwide are recognizing the benefits of generative AI and its crucial role in their success,” Toma stated. “This is driving a new era of work, productivity and opportunities across industries.”
While AI adoption in Africa has been relatively slow, Toma noted that half of the African CEOs surveyed by IBM expect to realize significant value from advanced AI and analytics.
However, he acknowledged that many businesses on the continent face obstacles such as costs, market and regulatory factors, workforce readiness, infrastructure, skills gaps, and ethical and governance challenges.
To overcome these hurdles, Toma urged organizations to adopt an “AI-first” approach, integrating AI into their overall business strategy. “Companies that will lead their respective industries for the next decade or two will be the ones that decide to be AI-first,” he asserted.
Toma highlighted IBM’s launch of Watsonx in 2023, an initiative aimed at developing trusted AI and driving innovation across sectors and industries.
He also shared examples of how IBM’s AI solutions and Watsonx are being deployed across various industries.
In Kenya, IBM is collaborating with the government to leverage watsonx’s geospatial foundation model to ensure climate resilience and track tree-planting activities.
In the Middle East, IBM partnered with the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority to launch an open-source Arabic Large Language Model, enabling the deployment of Arabic generative AI models and opening up possibilities for building AI models using Africa’s diverse languages.
“The adoption of generative AI is accelerating across enterprises as organizations aim to gain a competitive edge and unlock new opportunities,” Toma concluded.
“To achieve this, organizations need to have a robust AI strategy, the right level of investment, and clear standards and guardrails concerning the utilization of AI. Most importantly, they need the right partner who understands the overall business objective and how to overcome barriers preventing AI adoption.”
Read also: GITEX Africa 2024 Explores AI’s Transformative Impact on Continent’s National Economies
