The lack of specialized talent, knowledge of AI and clear use cases prevent Mexican companies from incorporating the technology into their processes.

Although 86% of companies recognize that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a competitive advantage, only one in three has incorporated AI in at least 25% of its operations, reveals the study “The era of AI in Mexico”, carried out by Endeavor and Santander.

The lack of adoption can be explained by the lack of specialized talent, lack of knowledge of the technology and clear use cases, since only 7% of companies consider that their staff is fully prepared to develop and offer AI services.

“The general lack of knowledge, not knowing very well the scope and how (the technology) works can panic a little and want to close the valve,” says Vincent Speranza, general director of Endeavor Mexico.

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In fact, 72% of organizations use third-party AI, 21% of their own developments and external products and only 7% their own developments. The most commonly used providers are OpenIA, Google Cloud, Amazon Bedrock and Einstein.

The study also points out that the industries that have had the greatest difficulty implementing technology are: logistics and transportation, real estate development, financial services, restaurants and retail.

Challenges of adoption

The report also notes that both companies developing AI products and those using the technology in their daily operations face challenges such as limited funding and lack of access to investment, as well as cybersecurity, regulation, and inaccurate results.

To address these challenges, companies are implementing various measures, such as adopting international regulatory frameworks, analyzing and cleansing data, and training on bias and diversity. In addition, startups have opted to encrypt data to protect sensitive data and information.

Vincent Speranza notes that those who do not adopt AI, even in small steps, commit a “sin” that can leave them behind.

“What we have observed is that this sin is committed by two types of entrepreneurs: the very successful one, who thinks ‘why am I going to change something that has made me successful? This arrogance in the face of success annihilates the consumption of innovation, including AI, and the one who is about to give up and no longer has the budget, the people, or the energy to adopt the technology.”

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Therefore, he recommends that entrepreneurs who want to implement AI do so in a controlled framework, with tools, knowing the data to be published and defining a state of use. “It does not have to be a whim or a fad, it has to be something very conscious and intentional.”

“I do think that we are at the beginning of this, but I do think that in the next few years consumption will be huge. We are early in this curve, but it is a curve that has a very steep slope.”

Artificial Intelligence Ecosystem in Mexico

In Mexico there are 362 companies in Artificial Intelligence and it is the Latin American country that has led the growth of this type of companies, because in six years it has grown 965% and the ecosystem generates 11,000 jobs.

This places Mexico as the second leading country in the adoption of Artificial Intelligence, only behind Brazil, which has 728 companies and a growth of only 487 percent.

In addition, Mexican companies have raised more than 500 million dollars in investment between 2022 and 2023 and this year they have had an average joint income of 1.3 million dollars.

The study also highlights the main applications of AI, with Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, Classification and Big Data. In addition, the interest in Generative AI is highlighted.

“All sectors are adopting it, e-commerce, fraud prevention, the education sector, I don’t see any industry that isn’t using it, what we do see is that those that had absolutely no technology integration, the effect it has is enormous. For example, we are seeing manufacturing companies that apply Endevor and have enormous traction.”

Finally, 58% of Mexicans see a positive impact when using AI, compared to 31% in the United States, which represents optimism and recognition of the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence.

 Source: www.eleconomista.com.mx