Investors reject trade-off between workers and AI, as over 70% urge companies to invest in both

The pressure is on for companies to turn AI investment into impact, according to PwC’s 2024 Global Investor Survey, released today. 73% of investors say companies should deploy AI solutions at scale, as overwhelmingly 66% expect the companies they invest in to deliver productivity increases from AI over the next 12 months, with 63% expecting revenue increases and 62% expecting it to increase profitability.

Read More
Staff Reports
Consumers in Asia/Pacific to Spend $32 billion on Programmatic Shopping via AI Agents by 2028, According to IDC

In the report, IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Future of Customer Experience 2025 Predictions — Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Implications, IDC stresses the integral role of AI to provide highly personalized experiences for customers to help the region’s businesses differentiate themselves from competitors. This is highlighted in the prediction that by 2028, consumers will spend $32 billion via AI agents that run independently on their smartphones to programmatically shop for goods, services, and considered purchases. CX executives will adjust their business strategies based on such initiatives and seek to incorporate a more AI-infused approach in their campaigns.

Read More
Staff Reports
AI Transforming ERP Software Systems, ISG

STAMFORD, Artificial intelligence in all its forms, including GenAI, natural language processing, agents and agentic devices, will revolutionize enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and the ways individuals and enterprises work with the software by 2027, a new research report from leading global technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG) says.

Read More
Staff Reports
2025 East Africa Digital Trust Insights Survey

As cyber threats become more sophisticated and persistent, organisations across East Africa are rising to the challenge. The latest Digital Trust Insights (DTI) Survey for the East Africa region, titled “Strengthening Cyber Defences: The Road to Resilience in East Africa” reveals a significant shift in priorities, with 74% of businesses in the region placing cyber risks at the top of their agenda—well above global averages. It’s clear that cybersecurity is no longer just an IT issue; it’s a critical business imperative.

Read More
Staff Reports
Gartner Predicts AI Adoption in 40% of Power and Utilities Control Rooms by 2027

By 2027, 40% of power and utilities will deploy AI-driven operators in control rooms, reducing human error risks, but increasing cyber-physical system security vulnerabilities, according to Gartner, Inc. The 2025 Gartner CIO and Technology Executive Survey indicated that 94% of power and utility chief information officers (CIOs) plan to increase their AI investments in 2025, with an average spending increase of 38.3%.

Read More
Staff Reports
25% of Asia/Pacific Businesses Cite ESG Compliance as a Top Challenge

A recent IDC report titled, Leveraging AI to Overcome ESG Compliance Challenges, highlighted that over 25% of businesses in Asia/Pacific rank Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) compliance requirements as their top challenge in the next 12 months. Being an export-reliant regional economy, the Asia/Pacific region is highly sensitive and influenced by regulations in western markets. Countries and businesses in the region must transition to more sustainable and ESG-compliant economies to ensure economic growth and maintain competitiveness. The small number of countries that have levied some form of carbon tax, such as Japan, Singapore, India, and Indonesia, are export-heavy economies that are more sensitive to shifts in global regulations and, as a result, are the early adopters.

Read More
Staff Reports
Worldwide Smartphone Shipments Grew 6.4% in 2024, Despite Macro Challenges according to IDC

According to preliminary data from the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker , global smartphone shipments increased 2.4% year-over-year (YoY) to 331.7 million units in the fourth quarter of 2024 (4Q24). This marks the sixth consecutive quarter of shipment growth, closing the whole year with 6.4% growth and 1.24 billion shipments, marking a strong recovery after two challenging years of decline. We expect the market to continue growing in 2025, albeit at a slower pace, as refresh cycles continue growing and pent-up demand is fulfilled.

Read More
Staff Reports
Navigating AI-Driven Security While Optimizing the Customer Experiences: What Decision-Makers Need to Know

As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes the digital landscape, business leaders must confront a perennial -- but growing -- paradox: how to secure operations against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats while simultaneously enhancing customer and employee experiences to stay competitive. 

In a recent BizTechReports Vidcast, Stephanie Aceves, Senior Director of Product Management at Tanium, shared insights on the evolving cybersecurity landscape and the considerations decision-makers must prioritize to ensure their organizations remain secure, resilient, and competitive.

Read More
Editor's PickStaff Reports
The Future of the Global Gaming Industry: Opportunities Amid Industry Challenges--BCG

The gaming industry, once synonymous with double-digit growth, now finds itself at a crossroads. Rising interest rates, the return of players to offices and classrooms post pandemic, and high-profile games failing to meet expectations have fundamentally reshaped the gaming landscape. The industry now faces a cascade of challenges: project delays, significant layoffs, and even shuttered studios have become all too common.

Read More
Staff Reports
Nearly three-in-five CEOs optimistic about global economic outlook as they plan headcount increases and continued AI rollout: PwC 2025 Global CEO Survey

The report, which surveyed 4,701 CEOs across 109 countries and territories, also finds that 42% expect to increase headcount by 5% or more in the next 12 months – more than double the proportion who expect headcount decreases (17%), and up from 39% last year. The percentage is highest (48%) among smaller companies (less than US$100 million) and those in the technology (61%), real estate (61%), private equity (52%) and pharma and life sciences (51%) sectors.

Read More
Staff Reports
Gartner Predicts Mobile App Usage Will Decrease 25% due to AI Assistants by 2027

By 2027 mobile app usage will decrease by 25% due to AI assistants according to Gartner, Inc.

Smartphone users will turn to AI assistants, such as Apple Intelligence, ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Meta AI, and others to replace apps for many functions. In addition to the impact of AI assistants, apps will be consolidated across separate brands and companies, creating mobile app partnerships or consortiums to reach more users per app at scale and defray the cost of creation and maintenance.

Read More
Staff Reports
AI, Cloud, and SAP: Navigating Business Transformation in the Digital Era

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing into SAP’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) ecosystem is reshaping the business landscape, according to experts who participated in a recent CIO Online executive discussion held under Chatham House Rules. 

In the wake of that session, BizTechReports convened Don Mishory, Managing Partner at Storm Reply, and Jaydeep Rathore, Senior Innovation Architect at AWS, for a vidcast to explore the strategic, operational, financial, and technological implications of this transformation.

Read More
Editor's PickStaff Reports
AI Transforming European Insurance Industry -- ISG

An unpredictable global environment and advancing AI and intelligent technologies are driving fundamental shifts in the risk landscape and insurers’ relationships with clients and regulators in Europe, says a new research report from Information Services Group (ISG), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

Read More
Staff Reports
Healthcare AI’s Future in Underrepresented Communities Hinges on Data Privacy – Julia Komissarchik, Glendor

The intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and healthcare holds immense promise, but achieving its full potential requires a careful balance of innovation, privacy, and regional inclusivity.

So says Julia Komissarchik, CEO of Glendor, in a recent BizTechReports vidcast in which she highlighted how her company is tackling some of the most pressing obstacles in the healthcare AI space: training AI models on sensitive medical data, addressing data silos, and ensuring diverse representation across regional healthcare datasets.

Read More
Editor's PickStaff Reports
CIO Roundtable Explores How IT and Business Can Align to Drive Transformation

As businesses adapt to an increasingly fast-paced and complex environment, IT leaders are being called upon to play a more strategic role in driving transformation. At a recent virtual roundtable hosted by CIO Magazine and PwC, technology executives from finance, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and other industries discussed how restructuring the relationship between business and IT can unlock greater value and enable continuous innovation.

Read More
Editor's PickStaff Reports
AI Adoption Drives Interest in DataOps, ISG

The expanding use of AI is driving enterprise interest in data operations (DataOps) to orchestrate data integration and processing and improve data quality and validity, a new research report from leading global technology research and advisory firm Information Services Group (ISG)

Read More
Staff Reports
CIO Roundtable Calls for Proactive Measures to Address Quantum Threats and Harness Generative AI

Organizations must act now to prepare for the looming threats of quantum computing while leveraging generative AI to enhance cybersecurity and operational efficiency. This was the consensus among industry leaders during a CIO Magazine virtual roundtable co-hosted by Ben Corll of Zscaler. The discussion brought together executives from various sectors to examine the dual challenge of mitigating quantum risks while capitalizing on AI-driven opportunities.

Read More
Editor's PickStaff Reports
Gartner Finance Survey Shows CFOs Planning to Slow Pay Increases Again in 2025

CFOs are planning smaller pay increases for employees in 2025, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc.

A poll of 300 CFOs and finance leaders in October 2024 found that while compensation remains a top area for budget boosts, second only to enterprise technology spending, pay increases have been slowing down for three years in a row (see Figure 1). For example, only 61% of CFOs are planning to increase average employee compensation in 2025, compared to 71% in 2024 and 86% in 2023.

Read More
Staff Reports