Curated from Latest from TechRadar US in News,opinion — Here’s what matters right now:
Artificial intelligence has become a back-office powerhouse and essential resource for sifting through data, optimizing processes, and automating the repetitive. But as AI tools become more accessible, they are no longer just crunching numbers behind the scenes. Executives are increasingly turning to these platforms as a trusted advisor for providing strategic insight and informing business decisions. Our recent survey found that nearly three-quarters (74%) of executives trust AI’s input over that of friends or colleagues. Even more striking, 44% said they would allow generative AI to override a decision they had already planned to make. These findings mark a profound shift in how leadership decisions are made. Traditionally, executives have relied on a blend of data, gut instinct, and conversations with trusted advisors. Now, AI is earning a spot in the inner circle, signaling a fundamental redefinition of how leaders pair human insight with machine intelligence to drive better outcomes. AI as Strategic Co-Pilot As companies prepare for an AI-focused future, business operations are being rewritten. Companies in every industry are looking for ways to incorporate AI that can help them build even the smallest competitive advantage. As a result, AI is taking on a new role as the C-suite’s strategic copilot, handling tasks like data analysis and recommendations (52%), uncovering hidden risks (48%) and presenting alternate strategic paths (47%). AI is helping leaders go deeper—to challenge assumptions, test new scenarios, and make more informed decisions about how their business operates. But even in everyday life, AI is finding valuable and exciting uses, with some guardrails. I’ve used it to help plan family vacations and generate personalized bedtime stories for my children. While it struggles to manage complex scheduling (and the nuances of how I manage my calendar ), AI has transformed how I approach and solve many problems, offering a helpful sounding board for tasks in both my personal and professional life. SAP CEO Christian Klein recently shared that he uses generative AI to preview quarterly earnings results and better understand company performance. AI’s influence extends to other roles in the C-suite as well, from automated anomaly detection in financial transactions for CFOs, to streamlining contract reviews and generation of new contracts for CPOs, to COOs needing to evaluate capacity planning and manage variability in market demand. And, of course, there is always the most common use case of all – summarizing complex documents and topics, and generating subsequent action items. We’re far from alone. More leaders are beginning to incorporate AI into the highest levels of planning and forecasting. Critical Thinking and the Human Touch As AI’s influence in the boardroom grows, so does the trust leaders place in it. Part of this stems from AI’s growing ability to analyze massive volumes of data and provide contextually rich insights. In som
Next step: Stay ahead with trusted tech. See our store for scanners, detectors, and privacy-first accessories.
Original reporting: Latest from TechRadar US in News,opinion