It seems like you can’t walk ten feet these days without having a conversation with someone about Generative AI. The CEO certainly wants to know what the CIO or business technology leader is doing to leverage AI capabilities to drive business growth, enhanced productivity for knowledge workers, obtain fresh customer and market insights, develop new Go-to-Market models, etc.

In our discussions with CIOs, CISOs, CDOs, CTOs and business technology leaders at our CIO & CISO Executive Leadership Summits, our Global CIO & CISO Executive Leadership Alliance (CELA) gatherings, our regional advisory board meetings and other forums, we certainly discuss use cases and applications for Generative AI. We also discuss data availability, the lack of maturity in third-party AI systems, supply-chain issues along with recommendations to assess which services are ready for prime time and which ones aren’t.

But in most cases, the conversations turn to governance – particularly in terms of data governance, the risks associated with utilizing AI (e.g., data privacy, algorithmic bias, a lack of transparency in AI models, ethical dilemmas, etc.) along with the security implications for deploying AI systems and services.

The potential business impact from AI initiatives is enormous – enhanced competitiveness of products, lower costs and increased productivity and time-to-market. Research by McKinsey & Company reveals that Generative AI could enable the automation of up to 70% of business activities across almost all occupations between now and 2030, adding trillions of dollars to the global economy.

AI isn’t new—the concept goes back to the 1950s. But Generative AI is different. Generative AI can provide human-like response. It can synthesize a lot of data. It can write job descriptions and create new content – capabilities that weren’t possible before.

But AI is also fraught with risks, which is one of the reasons why it’s prompting so much regulatory attention. As one recent financial services CISO shared at a recent HMG CIO & CISO Executive Leadership Summit, “There’s a tsunami of AI regulations coming.” While multiple tech industry CEOs are advocating for AI systems to be regulated – including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman – this will only add to the workloads for CISOs, CIOs and their teams.

We’re studying what matters most to business technology leaders, including the various layers associated with applying Generative AI. I strongly encourage you to attend our upcoming 2023 Global Innovation Summit on December 12 at The Harvard Club of New York City where we’ll be exploring these topics in-depth. We’ll also be examining the cybersecurity, privacy, regulatory and risk-related aspects of Generative AI at our 2023 Global CISO Executive Leadership Summit which is also taking place at the Harvard Club of New York City on December 12. You’ll be glad you did.