Homegrown information technologies company, Datacom, reveals that two thirds of Kiwi companies are using some form of AI, that is 48% up from 2023.

In the research ‘State of AI Index: AI Attitudes’, which surveyed 200 senior managers across New Zealand, Datacom revealed that in the past two years, 88% of Kiwi companies have introduced AI into their work processes.

There has been a shift in positivity towards AI since the last Datacom research one year prior.

Seventy percent say AI is “exciting” and support the technological advancement, which is up 47% from 2023.

Sentiment over the use of AI within companies has radically changed, with 71% of companies now saying that AI will drive economic advantages and revenue opportunities.

Confidence in AI has grown from 36% to 61% in one year.

“It’s positive to see New Zealand businesses realising the benefits of AI and feeling more confident in their understanding of AI risks and opportunities,” says Justin Gray, Datacom Managing Director New Zealand.

Datacom says that of those who already use AI within their organisations, 80% say it has had a positive impact while only 2% say it has not.

The remaining 18% were unsure yet of the impact AI had on their businesses.

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However, there is still a lot to explore in the world of AI for Kiwi companies.

“We are seeing more companies identifying relevant AI use cases for their business and to date a lot of these use cases are centred on automation and data analytics. There’s still a lot of scope to see greater use of more complex AI solutions in areas like employee productivity, customer service, and supporting complex decision making,” adds Gray.

Currently, AI is being used on common applications within Kiwi businesses, such as repetitive tasks and processes, big data analytics and synthesis of insights and workflow automation and optimisation.

But while AI adoption is high amongst Kiwi companies, Gray is concerned about the “stubbornly low” implementation of AI in governance, policies and training.

“Governance, policies and AI targets are an area where we have got to get better,” says Gray.

“There is huge potential for AI to transform the way we work, alleviate some of the repetitive work that can monopolise our time and make our teams more productive, but we need the guardrails in place to ensure we’re using AI safely and responsibly.”

Though two thirds of Kiwi companies are jumping on the AI bandwagon, there is still so much to work on, with Gray revealing only 39% have dedicated resources for AI.

With 27% of companies saying that they are still waiting for AI technology to mature, the following year is expected to be another big one for artificial intelligence.