Tech giants Microsoft, Alphabet and Amazon have ranked first, second and third on the list of companies that are successfully integrating and leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to boost business performance, according to the International Institute for Management Development (IMD).
The annual AI Maturity Index examines the world’s largest 200 companies and ranks them based on five dimensions – strong executive support, technology and infrastructure, operational excellence, workforce development and culture and ethics and risk management.
Meta Platforms, Alibaba Group and Qualcomm ranked fourth, fifth and sixth respectively, followed closely by IBM and Tencent Holdings in eight and ninth.
With regards to non-tech companies, Accenture, Visa, Deutsche Telekom and Bayer are leading the way.
Accenture is ranked seventh, Visa in 12th place, Deutsche Telekom in 15th place and Bayer in 20th place.
Accenture has announced a US$3 billion ($4.03 billion) investment in its data and AI practice in June, with plans to double its AI talent to 80,000 professionals. Accenture’s leadership in AI spans over a decade, with more than 1,450 patents and pending applications globally.
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Visa has invested over US$3 billion in AI and data infrastructure, developing over 150 AI models to ensure safe and seamless transactions. In October 2023, Visa launched a US$100 million fund to invest in generative AI startups.
Deutsche Telekom has integrated AI extensively across its platforms while Bayer has announced a US$1.4 billion investment in digital transformation in 2022.
Michael Wade, IMD professor and director of TONOMUS Global Centre for Digital and AI transformation, says: “It’s no surprise that tech titans lead the way, but it’s the non-tech players that are proving AI is anyone’s game.”
“The AI Maturity Index shows that there is a massive disparity both between and within industries in how organisations have invested in and leveraged AI technologies to improve their business operations,” Wade adds.
