Deploying AI: Overcoming complexity for business success

Deploying artificial intelligence comes with many complexities, challenges, and opportunities, including the promise of innovation powered by responsible governance.

As AI continues to mature, SAS Institute Inc. will help organizations navigate the complexities of AI implementation with foresight and an unwavering commitment to delivering tangible business value.

“Unfortunately, the generative value is not immediate,” said Jay Upchurch (pictured), chief information officer at SAS Institute. “That created this concept that I keep calling shadow AI, which means it’s missing some of the IT guardrails and security guardrails that it needs to run safely and effectively.”

Upchurch spoke with Dave Vellante of theCUBE Research and John Furrier of SAS Innovate during an exclusive broadcast on theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media's livestreaming studio. They discussed the big advances since the last SAS event, so-called shadow AI, and the momentum behind SAS' efforts to “do it right” in the field of AI. (*Disclosure below.)

Opportunities and risks of AI adoption

Organizations face multifaceted challenges and opportunities with AI adoption and require a robust infrastructure as applications evolve. According to Upchurch, AI is playing a pivotal role in transforming both SAS' internal operations and cloud-managed customer experience.

“We put guardrails in place to monitor data going in and out, making sure it doesn’t go where it shouldn’t go,” he said. “There are some customers, especially in sensitive areas like defense, but there are also customers who say, “Oh, that's not even an option.'' In those cases, you have to keep everything in that tight bubble and lock it away. ”That’s tough. “

Despite the promise of AI, the specter of shadow AI looms, where unregulated experimentation poses the risk of data leaks and security breaches, making governance and compliance frameworks even more important, Upchurch said. Did.

“There was a lot of public opinion about what the governing rules should be, and a lot of governing bodies came together to talk about it,” he said. “The problem with shadow AI is that the risk is higher. All of a sudden, proprietary data, sensitive data is unintentionally leaked out of your company, and you move to an open language model. Next thing you know, there's been a leak. , that's a big problem for our customers.”

Align your AI efforts with your business strategy

It’s important that companies align their AI efforts with broader business strategies. Technology is just a tool, Upchurch explained, and its real value comes from alignment with an organization's goals and processes. Using a more holistic approach, AI acts as an enabler for improving productivity and re-engineering processes rather than a standalone solution.

“These are technologies and tools to realize business strategies,” he said. “If I don't start with that purpose in mind, I'll be fine developing technology and solutions, and then I'll get something and go hunting around with it to find the problem. Then I'll have no problem with my job. I can't continue.'' It's so long. ”

SAS is committed to delivering tangible results in the field of AI innovation. As the market increasingly demands enterprise examples of AI that deliver real results, SAS remains poised to meet this demand through a combination of technology capabilities, strategic partnerships, and a strong commitment to responsible AI implementation. .

“I think the frontier of artificial intelligence is very real,” Upchurch said. “I think the market is looking for enterprise use cases where Gen AI delivers real results, and I think SAS is poised to deliver that.”

Here is the full video interview, part of SiliconANGLE and theCUBE Research's coverage of SAS Innovate:

(* Disclosure: SAS Institute Inc. theCUBE sponsors this segment. Neither SAS Institute nor other sponsors have editorial control over the content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE. )

Photo: SiliconANGLE