FINAL WORD
Non-customised AI solutions will fall out of favour in 2025 . Retrieval-Augmented Generation , RAG , will become a non-negotiable inclusion for Middle East enterprises , and it will take over as the adopted method of implementing AI . As business leaders demand ROI from the speculative investments they have already made in AI , RAG will be crucial for success .
This is because it provides a standard approach to customisation , improving results and reducing the possibility of hallucinations , rather than building , training and fine-tuning individual models from scratch .
Omar Akar , Regional VP , META and CEE , Pure Storage
# 2 Sustainability goals
As the demand for AI and associated data storage continues to grow , sustainability is once again going to be in the spotlight . As AI drove greater use of computing resources across the region , which had a negative impact on energy reduction goals , sustainability was sidelined .
But following Egypt ’ s and UAE ’ s hosting of COP summits , it is rising up the corporate agenda . How organisations view and implement sustainable practices is once again going to be on upper management ’ s radar .
More organisations will discuss their energy transition – how they are going to power the increased demand for data centres .
For savvy business leader , here are key trends to consider when charting your organisations ’ course for 2025 .
# 1 AI projects
Organisations are going to be more selective on AI projects in 2025 . While PwC ’ s Strategy &, sees the Middle East ’ s Generative AI race as a US $ 23.5 billion opportunity , companies will pull back spending before fatigue sets in .
The existing growth could become unsustainable because projects are not delivering ROI and realism will set in .
Many organisations are not going to be able to convince business leaders that they need to invest in new technology when existing AI or Generative AI projects have not delivered the promised benefits . While fear of missing out is still a huge driver for investment , this will be tempered in 2025 .
As a method to highlight the impact of sustainability , Impact Accounting will become widely adopted at a senior level .
Impact Accounting focuses attention on environmental issues and associated costs , and will become the de facto means of calling out the benefits of sustainability initiatives in a language the C-Suite and board will understand .
There will be a drive to build more data centres across many countries , as Middle East regulators continue to insist on data residency . Power and sustainability goals will stay firmly in the spotlight .
# 3 Cloud peak ?
There is a growing realism about the adoption of cloud . With increased expectations from regulation , more knowledge about the downsides , and geographical restrictions , 2025 could be the year we reach peak cloud .
On the regulation side , the Middle East could see DORA-like frameworks coming into force in 2025 and
www . intelligentcio . com INTELLIGENTCIO MIDDLE EAST 81