Artificial Intelligence (AI) is expected to go mainstream in the APAC region by the end of 2023 with more than 88% of enterprises in the region already using or planning to use AI or machine learning (ML) applications over the next 12 months, according to an IDC report, jointly commissioned by Lenovo and AMD. "AI applications enable CIOs to analyze large volumes of information and create real-time insights to drive customer engagement and customer experience, managing growing complexity of a rapidly expanding geo-dispersed infrastructure for higher levels of resiliency and agility, and securing their IT operations against the backdrop of growing incidence of ransomware and malware attacks," said the IDC report, which was based on a study of over 900 CIOs & IT decision makers across Asia Pacific. The top three business processes in which enterprises are expected to incorporate AI/ML include IT operations, cybersecurity, and customer support and service, the study noted. "Organizations are seeking AI/ML to streamline IT operations, as till today there are organizations that take time to get a virtual machine allocated to a customer," said Amit Luthra, managing director for India at Lenovo ISG. Given that in the present business environment there are some workloads in the public cloud while some in the hybrid cloud, it becomes difficult to define the operations and ascertain who presides over what data, Luthra pointed out.

For the fifth consecutive year, IDC ranked IBM the #1 market share leader in AI software platforms for 2019. In the IDC report, Worldwide AI Software Platforms Market Shares, 2019: The Battle Has Begun (doc #US46652020, July 2020), IDC valued the AI software platform market at USD 3.5 billion in 2019, a near-30% increase over the prior year. And despite a crowded landscape of competitors, IDC finds IBM leading the field among the largest AI platform players with an 8.8% share. While COVID-19 forces companies worldwide to reconsider business as usual, the accolades can wait; there's no time for a victory lap when work remains to accelerate the COVID-19 economic recovery with Data and AI. With IBM Watson positioned as the business world's first choice in AI software platforms, four competitive differentiators distinguish it from the competition.

The report, the Worldwide Artificial Intelligence Spending Guide, said that in 2019, worldwide spending on AI is expected to be $37.5 billion, but that this amount will almost treble by 2023, hitting just a smidgeon less than $100 billion -- $97.9 billion. Not only does the IDC report present good news for AI, it also refers to the machine learning phrase -- or ML, a nod to those who work in the business and are often quite frustrated by the over use of the AI acronym with all its connotations with hype. David Schubmehl, research director at Cognitive/Artificial Intelligence Systems at IDC said: "The use of artificial intelligence and machine learning (ML) is occurring in a wide range of solutions and applications from ERP and manufacturing software to content management, collaboration, and user productivity. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are top of mind for most organisations today, and IDC expects that AI will be the disrupting influence changing entire industries over the next decade." The IDC report said that investment in AI will be led by retail and banking industries.

Spending on artificial intelligence (AI) hardware and software is predicted to expand two-and-a-half times from current expenditure of $37.5 billion to $97.9 billion, according to a new report by International Data Corporation (IDC). That is a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 28.4 percent during the five-year 2018-2023 period of the report's forecast. Developers will see increased spending for AI software as it is predicted to overtake hardware purchases by 2023, according to the IDC Worldwide Artificial Intelligence Systems Spending Guide. In 2019 hardware spending for AI infrastructure is outpacing software purchases, IDC reports. But by 2023, it predicts that spending for AI software and AI software platforms will see 36.7 percent CAGR.

The electronics supply chain, for the past year, has been marked by component shortages, lead-time extensions and tariff uncertainties. Nevertheless, it's been a good year for component manufacturers and distributors--many of which have reported record quarterly sales during 2018. In 2019, IDC projects, the supply chain writ large is poised to transition from a cost center to an "opportunity center" as digital transformation accelerates. "If you go back--and I've been in the supply chain for a long time--one of the shifts I have seen in recent years is the supply chain is no longer about the lowest cost," said Simon Ellis, IDC program vice president for global Supply Chain Strategies. "The challenge has been'How do I do what I do as inexpensively as possible?' Now we have moved into the digital era where [the supply chain's task] is to deliver to customers' expectations. That's where we see opportunity."

Artificial intelligence isn't coming to terminate traditional retailers -- just like in "Terminator 2: Judgment Day," it's actually here to help. That was a key takeaway from a panel on robotics and AI held at NRF 2018: Retail's Big Show in New York City on Jan. 14. Instead of seeing AI as a threat that eliminates jobs through automation, retailers should embrace the technology as a tool that can solve their business problems, retail AI experts said. Michelle Bacharach, co-founder and CEO of FindMine, a company that uses supervised machine learning techniques to create complete outfits around each product an apparel retailer sells, said on the panel that AI should not be an end in itself. "If you start there, you've already failed," she advised retailers.

IDC reports that mainframes continue to provide high business value by combining efficient transaction processing with high-volume access to critical enterprise data, adding that organizations are now linking mobile devices to mainframe processing and data. In this scenario, excellent end-user experience becomes critical, IDC says. Read on to learn how CA Mainframe Operations Intelligence can help.