Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Indian enterprises have begun to adopt advanced analytics and data-driven decision making. The industrial products and manufacturing sector has seen the maximum adoption of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning(AI/ML) over the last two years, according to a report by PwC. 

The report titled, “Towards a smarter tomorrow: Impact of AI in the post-Covid era” notes that industrial products and manufacturing sector has seen a maximum increase of 20 per cent in the adoption/implementation of AI/ML solutions in the past two years — from mid-2020 to 2022-23 . In the 12–18-month period following the pandemic, these segments reaped maximum benefits from AI in three business functions — manufacturing and operations, supply chain and logistics, and IT and cybersecurity.

Early days

Almost 64 per cent of the organisations surveyed in the Industrial Products and Manufacturing sector say they are currently at an early stage of their AI-based transformation journey reflecting the opportunities for further investments and growth led by AI/ML solutions in this sector, the report said. 

Sudipta Ghosh, Partner and Leader — Data & Analytics, PwC India, said, “As organisations mature in their journey towards using AI for driving business outcomes, a three-pronged approach around identification of appropriate use cases, rigor of measuring and communicating the RoI along with driving adoption and scale at the enterprise level using the framework of responsible and explainable AI will be critical.”

While there has been a significant increase in AI adoption with scalable impact in terms of returns, trends indicate that the travel and hospitality industry has reached a degree of saturation. While the technology, media, telecom, as well as healthcare, and pharmaceutical sectors, have seen steady progress, they are facing certain challenges around measuring the return on investments, especially in the pre-and post-Covid-19 times. 

Compared to other sectors, the retail and consumer market has seen a decline in AI adoption due to a gap in the identification of potential use cases amidst changing market forces and consumer behavior, the report noted.