Limited infra prevents full AI adoption among PH companies, says Cisco

While nearly all of the surveyed Filipino companies are gearing up for artificial intelligence (AI) adoption, a study by Cisco revealed that limited network infrastructure was barring them from fully implementing the technology seen to enhance operations.

In a recent report, the global technology company said that 95 percent of companies across the world were aware that AI demands bigger infrastructure workloads but only 35 percent of the local organizations claimed to have “highly scalable” networks.

More Filipino companies, or 49 percent, noted they have “limited or no scalability at all” in their existing information technology (IT) systems to address AI needs.

To support AI integration, Cisco noted that 84 percent of the companies would need to invest in data center graphics processing units, which enable quick processing of high-data workloads.

“As companies in the Philippines rush to deploy AI solutions, they must assess where investments are needed across different pillars of readiness like infrastructure and data to deliver on their business outcomes,” Cisco Philippines managing director Zaza Soriano-Nicart said.

Urgent need

According to its research, 98 percent of the surveyed organizations in the Philippines noted that rolling out AI-backed tools have become more urgent as 61 percent pointed to the need to adopt the technology in the next year or else, they would be left behind.

Some 94 percent were “already having a robust AI strategy in place or are in the process of developing one,” the report said. In terms of talent, 96 percent of the respondents said they were upskilling employees to know how to navigate an AI-enabled network.

But only 17 percent of the companies were fully prepared to do so.

Majority or 68 percent said they still need to work on their AI policies to be compliant with governance and regulations. “These factors include data privacy and data sovereignty, and the understanding of and compliance with global regulations,” the study noted.

The use of AI has raised the need for heightened data privacy as it handles sensitive information that, in the wrong hands, could be used for fraudulent or illegal purposes.

“They also have to pay attention to how AI is being used to ensure a good return on investment, with security, and responsibility in mind,” the Cisco official said.

For the study, Cisco surveyed over 8,000 private sector business and IT leaders across 30 markets, including the Philippines.

—Tyrone Jasper C. Piad INQ