What You Need To Know Today

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has evolved from a novelty to a necessity right in front of our eyes.

What was once useful for viral image generation or clunky essay prep has evolved almost overnight into the cornerstone of modern business operations, capable of transforming customer service, recruiting, engineering, and decision-making processes across all industries.

Given the pace at which AI has developed, keeping up with its latest advancements can feel overwhelming. For most CEOs the question isn’t whether to invest in AI or when, but what to prioritize.

In this article, we’ll explore examples of how AI is being used in real-life applications to give leaders and entrepreneurs inspiration and a launch point for their own integrations. Let’s begin by assessing major trends, after which we’ll break down AI’s business use cases into key categories to inspire and help leaders think strategically about their next AI-powered move.

What CEOs have been doing with AI in 2024

AI is rapidly becoming a central component to business operations across sectors with Goldman Sachs expecting global AI investments to reach $200 billion by 2025.

So far, machine learning and computer vision technologies have attracted the majority of AI investments, and industries like technology, telecommunications, automotive, and financial services are leading the way in AI adoption.

According to McKinsey, CEOs have prioritized cloud and edge computing, connectivity and generative AI thus far, with significant adoption spikes to be expected in categories such as industrial machine learning, cybersecurity and robotics.

Thanks to companies like OpenAI, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Salesforce having poured billions into AI research and development, particularly on generative AI, a growing number of their clients are using AI to streamline repetitive tasks, allowing employees to focus on creative and strategic activities instead of the rote and mundane.

The Golden Age of AI Startups is here: Here’s Why You Should Pay Attention

The AI boom extends well beyond the established tech-conglomerates, with an incredibly lively fringe of small and medium-sized companies developing cutting-edge solutions and deploying foundational models created by others in productive ways. From AI-driven tools that automate backend operations to generative AI applications reshaping customer experiences, this wave of startups is driving innovation at unprecedented speeds.

What’s particularly exciting about today’s AI startups is their agility.

While the tech giants provide the foundational models and infrastructure, these smaller companies are focusing on niche solutions that can be integrated rapidly into existing systems, or replace legacy processes entirely at lower costs.

This means you don’t need a massive tech budget to benefit from AI—startups are making AI accessible and tailored for businesses of all sizes. Below, we’ll explore some of the most exciting established and emerging AI technologies across categories like customer service, talent acquisition, and operational automation, providing insights into the best AI applications for business.

Delivering World-Class Customer Experiences

AI is transforming customer service, allowing businesses to offer more personalized and efficient support. Here are some key AI applications that can enhance customer interactions and help deliver world-class experiences:

• Chatbots and virtual assistants: Chatbots have quickly become an essential tool for customer service. These AI-powered systems can handle everything from simple inquiries to complex support cases. Platforms like Zendesk and Drift integrate AI-powered bots that offer 24/7 support, allowing customers to get answers instantly without waiting for human agents.
• Personalization engines: AI-driven personalization tools can analyze customer behavior and preferences to deliver personalized product recommendations and tailored experiences. Dynamic Yield, for instance, helps companies like Sephora and Ikea optimize customer experiences through data-driven personalization.
• AI-Powered sales and marketing assistants: Solutions such as those offered by Conversica, automate customer engagement for sales and marketing teams. These virtual assistants initiate conversations with leads, respond to queries, and nurture prospects autonomously, freeing up staff to focus on higher-level tasks.
• Sentiment analysis: Sentiment analysis tools help businesses understand customer emotions by analyzing social media comments, reviews, and support interactions. Sprinklr and Quid are examples of companies offering AI-driven insights into customer sentiment to inform marketing strategies and improve customer service.
• Voice AI for call centers: AI-powered voice assistants and other CX applications dedicated to customer calls are enhancing traditional call centers by offering real-time transcription, sentiment analysis, predictive analytics and much more. Callminer and Observe.AI are examples of companies that use voice intelligence to support customer service agents, providing insights that improve call quality and customer satisfaction.

Recruiting world-class talent

AI is being used on both sides of the recruitment table, with employers automating key functions, such as candidate sourcing and prescreening, and analyzing vast data sets to match the right talent with the right roles. Some have even deployed AI agents that can handle entire interviews automatically.

• Automated recruiting: Platforms like Braintrust AIR and TalentEDGE AI analyze candidate profiles, match them with job requirements, and even conduct prescreening interviews, freeing up recruiters to focus on higher-level tasks, such as refining hiring strategies and engaging more deeply with inbound talent.
• Global HR and onboarding: Another HR niche that AI is rapidly growing into is streamlining global hiring by automating the onboarding process and ensuring compliance across jurisdictions. For example, platforms like Borderless deploy AI to ensure legal and financial compliance while hiring and paying employees in more than 170 jurisdictions.

Empowering your talent to perform at their best

Once onboard, AI can be a game-changer in empowering employees to reach their full potential by streamlining workflows and eliminating redundant tasks.

• Generative AI tools and coding agents: The onslaught of AI agents and end-to-end generative AI may have started with software engineering, but it is coming for every industry and job profile out there. Solutions like Microsoft’s Copilot, OpenAI’s ChatGPT, and Google’s Gemini are just the tip of the generative iceberg, with dozens of smaller platforms such as Devin, JACoB and Builder.ai taking a more agentic approach.
• Backend automation: AI tools like Krista.AI and Platma are driving backend automation by allowing organizations to streamline internal processes and workflows as well as offering no-code solutions to digitization.
• Creating agentic ecosystems: AI is rapidly evolving beyond isolated solutions to build agentic ecosystems, where multiple AI agents collaborate to automate complex processes, optimize operations, and drive intelligent decision-making at scale. Platforms like Valory, Dystr, and Fetch.ai are leading this shift by creating decentralized networks of AI agents that can work autonomously or in coordination to achieve specific tasks.