In a massive leap, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) have vaulted beyond outcomes of efficiency gains to drive game-changing innovation of business processes. They have evolved rapidly to create and implement processes for complex and data-driven decision-making, transforming business strategy and driving workforce empowerment. Little wonder the current value of the global AI market (which is estimated at an impressive US$235 billion) is projected by IDC to exceed US$631 billion by 2028, reshaping in its wake, both industries and economies. Not only have AI and ML streamlined the work to be done, they have also completely redefined job roles in a data-first landscape.
Let’s look at the exciting new possibilities of how AI and ML will revolutionize business processes in 2025.
Reimagining autonomous intelligence with Agentic AI
The era of reactive AI assistants is over. Agentic AI is here to deliver proactive customer engagement and decision-making. Agents can and will be customized to collaborate with humans to design and implement strategic tasks and decisions. Agentic AI will amp up business processes, efficiencies, and customer experiences.
Leveraging predictive analytics and models on real-time data, AI and ML will enable businesses to anticipate trends and outcomes, make proactive decisions, and outpace competition. For example, logistic companies can optimize routes with AI-driven algorithms, manufacturing firms can predictively schedule maintenance even before breakdowns occur, retailers can swiftly adjust prices to counter competitor moves, and financial institutions can anticipate and prevent fraudulent activity before it happens.
Delivering greater context and accuracy with multimodal AI
Processing information from text, images, audio, and video, multimodal AI will deliver more intuitive interactions to enhance the accuracy of AI outcomes. This human-centric approach to AI in a data-explosive landscape will deliver a more nuanced understanding of customer and market requirements across industries—which, in turn, will enable organizations to create hyper-personalized experiences and achieve higher revenues.
For example, in healthcare, multimodal AI will enable greater accuracy of diagnosis and treatment, integrating data from different sources. In retail, it will understand customer preferences through voice, images, and text to help stores deliver highly personalized recommendations.
Designing newer business models to stay ahead of the curve
AI-as-a-Service (AIaaS) enables businesses to access and leverage advanced AI tools without large in-house investments. AI-driven platforms and products can create new revenue streams and access newer markets for differentiated growth.
Manufacturing companies can deploy AIaaS to create strategy, design, and develop products, streamline supply chains, integrate cloud systems, and align business processes with current and future organizational objectives. Intelligent process automation can integrate advanced algorithms to enhance speed and accuracy of complex judgment-intensive business processes such as compliance management and financial audits.
Beyond the prototype to AI at scale
Scale will be the name of the game for AI to deliver true and differentiated business process transformation. Bid goodbye to the days of pilot and one-off projects and get ready to embed them across the enterprise, for this is what will provide significant strategic advantage.
Successful scaling will call for:
▪ Integration with business goals and strategies
▪ Prioritizing high-impact use cases for rapid scaling to maximize value
▪ Building strong data foundations, and democratizing data and technology across the organization
▪ Driving the right change management
▪ Skilling, cross-skilling, and upskilling of talent
▪ Building trust in AI systems through responsible practices.
There is a powerful symbiotic relationship between business process transformation, and AI and ML. The evolution of these technologies has brought intelligence and adaptability to business process automation, and enabled systems to not only learn patterns, but also to predict trends and evolve to innovate. It is a partnership that will transform processes to become smarter and more efficient.
The next big developments will further redefine the business landscape; from the way they will process data to the way they will enable decision-making, AI and ML are poised to transform business processes in multi-dimensional ways. Organizations will do well to stay ahead of these trends so that they can unlock exciting opportunities to drive innovation and build their competitive edge in a rapidly evolving digital era.
Bhaskar Dhawan leads the global service line for Digital Engineering & Experience at Mastek, overseeing initiatives spanning Digital Applications, Cloud Engineering, CX/Commerce, and AI.