Mohamed Kande, Global Chairman of PwC, has declared that the future is not coming, it is already here, during a fireside chat with IFS CEO Mark Moffat, at the inaugural IFS Industrial X Unleashed conference in New York City.
CNME Editor Mark Forker was in attendance at the event, in which IFS signalled a new course of direction in the form of Industrial AI Applied.
During a session entitled; Inside the Boardroom: Leading through the AI Revolution, Kande in conversation with IFS CEO Mark Moffat, mapped out what he seeing in boardrooms globally.
Kande stated that conversations around AI had pivoted away from driving efficiency, and had been replaced by a desire to start doing things differently.
“I have the privilege in the job that I have to travel all over the world. I have been all across Europe, Asia, and many other continents, and I have reached the conclusion that over the last 12 months the conversation around AI has evolved. A year ago, it was all about driving efficiencies, and using AI for the back office, finance, HR and IT to do things better. Now the conversation has shifted, it is about doing things differently,” said Kande.
Kande said that the sheer volume and scale of investments being made are in some cases unprecedented, and said that the level of capital expenditure currently being poured into AI, has not been seen the late 90s.
“One of the key data points for us is around the capital that is currently being deployed into AI. $70 trillion dollars in infrastructure CAPEX has already been deployed, or has been committed to being deployed over the next couple of years. The last time we witnessed so much capital being deployed was more than 25 years ago, and that was in the internet. This is not venture investment, this is industrial investment. All the infrastructure that needs to be built for the future will need to incorporate AI. However, what has become clear to me is that the future is not coming, it is already here,” said Kande.
Kande was then joined on stage by IFS CEO Mark Moffat, who referenced that Kande works with over 90% of Fortune500 companies, and asked him directly what is hearing in the boardroom when it comes to the concept of Industrial AI.
Kande highlighted that there is mixed feelings being expressed in boardrooms globally when it comes to the topic of AI.
“It’s very interesting to sit in a room, and see opposite feelings at the same time, and the two feelings are fear and excitement. The excitement stems from the opportunities when it comes to Industrial AI, and the fear is driven by the fear of missing out and not being fast enough. There is also the fear of making the wrong choices when it comes to this technology, because we know today when it comes to AI it’s a matter of national security. The ability to have access to the right technologies at the right time is crucial,” said Kane.
Kande said that the conversations in the boardroom now on a global scale are very different to what they were 12 months ago.
“The question is now not about whether they should adopt AI, everybody knows that they have to, and that they need to move quickly,” said Kande.
Considering that paradox of excitement and fear, Moffat pressed Kande on what sort of advice he gives to the C-suite when it comes to pursuing their AI aspirations and ambitions.
Kande assessment is frank, he believes leaders can’t hold back.
My recommendation to a lot of the CEOs that I speak to is that they have to jump in. Don’t look for the answers, look for the questions, and it’s OK to make mistakes. Whoever isn’t making mistakes these days, isn’t trying hard enough. We can’t predict the future, but you have to try,” said Kande.
Kande acknowledged that nobody can predict the future, but said that the fear that previously existed with AI is no longer there in the boardrooms that he frequents worldwide.
“I think were the boards are today is the realisation that nobody can predict the future, therefore what are you left with? You have to make the future that you want to happen and as a result, we’re seeing more and more investments from boards and CEOs. At the end of the day, nobody wants to be left behind, so speed is off the essence. However, the fear of artificial intelligence is gone, but the part where people are very careful with, especially when it comes to Industrial AI is the controls that you need to have around it,” said Kande.