Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises x AI: Now is the Time to Start Business Transformation

For many companies, AI (artificial intelligence) is already becoming an essential business tool. For small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), in particular, where resources and human resources are limited, the use of AI is expected to be a major differentiating factor. However, implementation costs and a lack of skills are issues, and these barriers must be overcome.

In the United States, the use of AI is already progressing in small and medium-sized enterprises, and its potential is demonstrated through concrete data in "Small Businesses See the Transformative Potential of Artificial Intelligence," a survey of 2,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in the United States.

In this article, we will summarize the key points of the report and explain it with a focus on ROI (return on investment) and business impact .

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#Business impact of SMEs x AI in numbers

• 60% expect AI tools to improve their company's productivity over the next two years ,

• 55% strongly believe that AI will be key to business success over the same period, with 81% of companies that have already adopted AI feeling the same way.

• Additionally, 82% of companies that have already implemented AI responded that they have "realized positive results."

• When asked why SMEs are introducing AI tools, 60% answered "to reduce time and costs" and 59% answered "to support overall business growth," indicating that they expect benefits in both sales and costs.

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#Challenges during implementation

Despite these expectations and positive results, many small and medium-sized enterprises remain hesitant to adopt AI. According to the report, 72% of managers consider "privacy, reliability, and security" to be their top priorities when using AI , suggesting deep-rooted concerns about the handling of customer information and internal data. To maximize the business benefits of adopting AI, it is essential to establish an appropriate governance system and manage data ethically.

It is also noteworthy that many companies that have already introduced AI are focusing on increasing AI literacy throughout their organizations. In fact, 74% of SMB managers consider AI training for employees to be a priority, and they are not only focusing on introducing new tools and services, but also on developing human resources who can use them proficiently.

As these figures show, while an increasing number of companies are experiencing success with AI implementation, the foundations that support this, such as "ensuring reliability and safety" and "employee training," are becoming increasingly important. In the future, it is expected that the number of external services and tools that can utilize advanced AI technology will increase, further lowering the barriers to adoption for small-scale starters, allowing many small and medium-sized enterprises to enjoy the benefits of AI.

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#Message from Quest AI

Quest AI collects and publishes case studies that emphasize quantitative performance indicators (ROI and specific cost-effectiveness) in response to the question, "How effective is the introduction of AI really?" As can be seen from this report, "Small Businesses See the Transformative Potential of Artificial Intelligence," small and medium-sized enterprises are particularly likely to benefit from AI and tend to adopt it more quickly.

• By clarifying the purpose and narrowing the scope of implementation appropriately, results are easily visible in a short period of time.

• Even if you lack knowledge about AI, you can make full use of it by using external resources wisely.

At Quest AI, we will regularly introduce examples of companies that have achieved real ROI , regardless of their size or industry. If you're considering implementing AI but don't know where to start, or are worried about balancing the initial investment with the return, we encourage you to use our information to consider your next steps in using AI.