AI adoption in telecoms sector surges, says Cavell report

Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption is surging in the telecoms sector, reports Cavell, a research and consulting firm specialising in the telecommunications industry.

New data from their latest Telecoms Buyer Report, which gathered insights from over 1,500 telecom buyers, reveals that 58% of telecom buyers across the UK, US, and Europe are intending to build AI capabilities into their products.

The report, dated 2023, also indicates that 70% of the companies are or planning to establish a policy on AI usage. Moreover, nearly 44% of respondents revealed that their company has already incorporated a solution that utilises AI or is defined as 'AI-enabled.'

As per the annual survey, which has been in existence since 2019, the role of the C-suite is expanding in the decision-making process for telecoms services, with CEOs or Presidents having input in 33% of companies. Moreover, 20% of respondents mentioned that they now include their entire employee base in telecoms decisions.

Regarding the AI applications within telecoms, it was found that US firms seemed more focused on enhancing data analysis and management (26%), while an equivalent proportion of UK firms were specifically aimed at reducing human error.

Commenting on the research findings, Finbarr Begley, Senior Analyst at Cavell, stated: "AI in communications is not a future technology anymore, it is here. Its impact is already being seen and it is finding its way into every sort of solution imaginable. This is also driving rapid expansion and refinement of AI policies as suppliers are asked to clarify their own usage of AI and guarantee that no misuse is occurring anywhere in the supply chain."

Interestingly, some reservations about AI still exist, with a main worry being that future adoption may mistakenly infringe on customer privacy and protection regulations (28%). In the UK, in particular, there are concerns that employees might misuse AI (26%).

Cavell is a research and consulting firm specialising in the telecommunications industry with a particular focus on business communications technologies including UCaaS, collaboration, contact centre and customer engagement software, business messaging, and Microsoft Teams. Cavell is focused on providing insights, analysis, and advisory services to help their clients navigate and succeed in these rapidly evolving sectors.

Cavell's team combines years of accumulated telecoms industry experience with enterprise and SMB surveys and proven market intelligence to provide a suite of services including market research, commercial and technical due diligence, strategy advisory services and leading industry events.