Sam Sebastian, the Vice-President and Canada Country Manager at Google Cloud, has expressed his belief that businesses have only begun to tap into the potential of artificial intelligence (AI), even as the technology becomes increasingly integrated into everyday life. In a television interview with BNN Bloomberg, Sebastian drew parallels between the current use of AI and the early days of the internet, emphasizing how AI is poised to reshape industries and business operations.
“This is a significant technological shift that will change the future of how industries will work, how businesses work,” Sebastian remarked. “We’re just getting started. It’s extremely exciting.”
While some research suggests that AI adoption has been relatively slow, with a recent study from Toronto Metropolitan University indicating that only four percent of Canadian companies are actively utilizing AI, Sebastian contended that companies are already leveraging AI to accelerate their processes and enhance the quality of their products.
“When you look at the opportunities to make products better, engage with users in a better way, but also increase the bottom line, improve profitability, and efficiency, this is a technological shift that we haven’t seen in an extremely long time,” he asserted.
Sebastian also noted that, initially, many executives were skeptical about the potential of AI. However, a growing number of them are now embracing the technology rather than risking falling behind in an ever-evolving business landscape.
“We’re seeing engagement like we’ve never seen before from boards, from C-suites with this technology to figure out how we can potentially disrupt or transform their business, but do it from the inside, rather than someone disrupt from the outside,” he concluded.
