Switzerland has always been famous for its financial expertise and precision engineering. Now, the country known for its traditional approach to new technologies is riding the wave of Generative AI. The Strand Partners study discovered that Swiss businesses reported a 36% increase in AI adoption in 2023. This growing trend could unlock 127 billion Swiss francs for the country’s economy by 2030. Let’s take a closer look at the GenAI revolution happening in Switzerland.
The consulting firm PwC highlights Switzerland as a top contender for AI growth among 20 advanced nations. In “the best case scenario”, the new technology could boost the country’s GDP by as much as CHF 50 billion ($56 billion) by 2030.
PwC points out that sectors like technology, software, media, pharmaceuticals, and finance will gain the most from this new technology. These sectors are well-established in Switzerland compared to countries less advanced in AI, like Germany and France. This advantage explains Switzerland’s impressive growth potential.
As one might suggest, the Swiss financial sector is at the forefront of GenAI innovation. Accenture believes that financial services may experience time savings between 20 and 30%. So, investment firm Pictet Group collaborated with Unique AG, Switzerland-based FinanceGPT, to launch One.Chat. The AI-powered platform enables 5,000 employees to access internal information seamlessly.
Insurer Swiss Re rolled out a GenAI-powered assistant across various departments, including HR, communications, and core business functions, to streamline operations and boost productivity.
In turn, UBS Group AG has created a “copilot” of their own to facilitate offering clients potential M&A deals. The unique tool can analyse a database of over 300,000 companies in under 30 seconds, producing buy-side suggestions and pinpointing potential buyers.
Other industries also eagerly leverage generative AI. Roche, a leading healthcare company, employs AI to analyse health data, expediting drug discovery and development.
At the same time, Novartis’ GenChem initiative harnesses advanced AI to create molecular structures, expediting the discovery of high-quality medications. With a team of over 250 data scientists, the initiative optimises crucial research areas, ranging from target identification to predictive biomarkers.
Telecom giant Swisscom announced its partnership with NVIDIA to develop full-stack supercomputers for generative AI in Switzerland using NVIDIA accelerated computing and the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform. Swisscom intends to establish a Trusted AI Factory for Swiss customers through this collaboration, leveraging NVIDIA’s global ecosystem.
Challenges and concerns
Despite the enthusiasm, challenges remain. Accenture’s analysis highlights a readiness disparity in Swiss companies regarding the widespread adoption of AI.
Presently, merely 2% of Swiss businesses are expanding generative AI implementation across their entire enterprise. In contrast to global leaders, a notably higher proportion of Swiss firms anticipate this integration to span 12 to 18 months.
Additionally, just 7% of Swiss executives are confident in their data strategy and digital proficiency to capitalise on generative AI effectively.
As Swiss enterprises explore the potential of generative AI, the authorities also join in. The federal government created the Swiss Financial Innovation Desk (FIND) to boost financial innovation. One of the hub’s initiatives is the SwissHacks hackathon, aiming to concierge and hatch transformation in fintech.
The Federal Statistical Office (FSO) has teamed up with the Swiss Data Science Centre (SDSC) to promote the utilisation of data science and artificial intelligence across the Swiss Government.
As generative AI continues to evolve, Swiss companies have the power to reshape the global business landscape. By blending innovation with caution and strategic investment, Switzerland can become a European leader in enterprise AI adoption.
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