Adobe today released its Digital Trends 2024 Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ) report, showing brands across the region lead other geographies in generative AI deployment and are set to make major near-term organisational changes to scale up adoption.
According to executives among APJ brands, almost two in three (65 per cent) have implemented full or initial AI solutions and pilots, making them further along than peers in the US (61 per cent) and Europe (55 per cent). Within the APJ region, deployment is highest in Japan (82 per cent), followed by India and Asia (both 72 per cent), while ANZ is behind its peers in formal implementation (50 per cent).
Stage of generative AI adoption within the organisation according to senior executives (evaluation vs implementation of full or initial solutions/pilots)
However, while executives are confident their generative AI rollouts are advancing to plan, many day-to-day users hold a different view. Across APJ, just 4 per cent of executives say their organisation doesn’t have a formal generative AI adoption strategy, which rises substantially among practitioners. ANZ has a significant gap where only 3 per cent of executives concede there in no formal strategy compared to 21 per cent of practitioners.
Agree that no formal generative AI adoption strategy exists (senior executives vs practitioners)
Duncan Egan, vice president Digital Experience Marketing Asia Pacific and Japan, Adobe said the disconnect can stem from viewing generative AI through a different lens.
“For some senior executives, adoption can be as simple as signing a vendor contract, while practitioners are likely better acquainted with the realities of having the right data, tools and training. However, we expect this disconnect to narrow in 2024, with brands poised to strengthen organisational readiness for generative AI deployment.”
As a leader in AI and a trusted partner, Adobe is working closely with brands across Asia Pacific as they transition generative AI initiatives from experimentation into enterprise-level deployment. By integrating generative AI into the Adobe apps that marketers already use including Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Photoshop and apps within Adobe Experience Platform, it can more easily be adopted into exiting workflows, all in a commercially safe way, backed by enterprise-grade security, privacy and compliance.
The report confirms that among APJ brands, generative AI integration is the digital initiative most likely to support growth in 2024. As a result, most brands are developing guidelines for responsible use of AI (73 per cent) and aligning a comprehensive AI roadmap with broader business goals (71 per cent).
“Generative AI offers a clearer path to unify data, predict customer needs, and deliver more relevant and time-critical content. However, the study shows that despite widespread adoption intentions, only some brands are recalibrating to seize these benefits, putting them ahead in the race for consumer loyalty, conversion, and trust,” Egan said.
Brands to adapt organisation structures, skills and data capabilities for AI era
Brands anticipate significant changes to operating models and organisational structures to support generative AI adoption. Across APJ, the majority intend to reorganise teams and functions to accommodate AI usage, which is highest in Asia (80 per cent) and India (74 per cent), followed by ANZ (67 per cent). While plans to introduce AI leadership roles are high across the regions (India at 78 per cent, Asia at 73 per cent, ANZ at 64 per cent and Japan at 60 per cent).
Changes to organisational structures expected by mid-to-end of 2024 to support generative AI adoption
Executives are also prioritising initiatives to help employees upskill and provide clear guardrails for using generative AI. The top-rated is advanced AI skills training for key staff (47 per cent), followed by policies for ethical and secure generative AI usage (45 per cent).
Over two-thirds of APJ brands also believe that generative AI will transform data analytics and management more than any other part of the organisation. They also recognise that data capabilities and governance are a cornerstone capability, with most planning to increase investment in customer data management in 2024. Within APJ, this is highest in India (75 per cent).
Sub-regional highlights and comparisons
|
Australia and New Zealand |
India |
Japan |
Asia |
|
| Brands that say their digital CX is exceptional |
21 per cent |
21 per cent |
2 per cent |
17 per cent |
| Prioritising customer data management as the top area of CX investment in 2024 |
53 per cent |
75 per cent |
67 per cent |
51 per cent |
| Routinely using generative AI to craft emails, messages and other copy (practitioners) |
27 per cent |
38 per cent |
9 per cent |
31 per cent |
| Routinely using generative AI to personalise images, infographics, or other content (practitioners) |
24 per cent |
40 per cent |
9 per cent |
27 per cent |
| See clear benefit of using AI for content creation |
75 per cent |
82 per cent |
71 per cent |
77 per cent |
