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We’ve seen many instances of “artificial intelligence” over the years — in fact, the term was coined over 70 years ago with Alan Turing’s work on computer intelligence. Since then, it has seen major developments that have introduced new uses in business and daily life.
The newest developments in AI around large language models (LLMs) have spurred leaps in AI’s ability to retrieve information, summarize data, and generate written text, code, and other content. Small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) were quick to adopt these tools — and now, 90% of SMEs are either using AI or planning to.
These developments initially sparked fear in IT professionals, many of whom saw AI as an industry disruptor and threat to their jobs. However, JumpCloud’s recent survey of over 600 SME IT professionals suggests that time has proven AI to be more of a helpful tool than a job replacement for IT. As such, SMEs and the IT professionals that work with them are changing their tune when it comes to the benefits and risks of AI. These are the top three changes we’ve seen since Q1 2024.
All data cited in this blog is from JumpCloud’s 2024 SME IT Trends report unless otherwise cited.
1. SMEs’ Eagerness to Adopt AI Has Increased
SMEs are displaying a growing enthusiasm around AI, and their rate of adoption has followed suit. Since Q1 2024, the number of SMEs planning to initiate AI projects within the next six months has risen from 27% to 35%. This jump indicates a heightened interest and urgency in integrating AI into business strategies.
This increased eagerness is also reflected in the way SMEs are structuring their AI initiatives. Over two-thirds (67%) of SMEs now have a formal AI policy in place, a rise from 63% in Q1 2024, demonstrating a more deliberate approach to AI adoption. Furthermore, 60% of IT professionals at SMEs feel their organizations are advancing at the right pace with their AI efforts, an improvement from 55% previously. These trends reveal a clear shift toward more proactive and strategic AI integration, signaling that SMEs are not only more interested in AI but also more prepared to implement it effectively.
2. Fear Is Replaced with Optimism
In addition to SMEs’ eager adoption of AI, IT professionals’ support for AI initiatives is growing. Initially, AI spurred significant fears around job security for IT professionals: in Q1 2024, nearly half (45%) said they were worried about AI’s impact on their job. That number has already dropped to 35%. It seems that initial fears are being alleviated as IT professionals witness AI functioning as a great supporter and assistant rather than as a job replacement.
Perhaps because of this shift, IT professionals are also showing increased support for AI adoption. Over three-quarters (77%) see AI as a net positive for their organization. And when asked if they thought their organizations should be investing in AI, 82% of IT professionals said yes (and 48% said they should be investing a lot), which is up from 76% in Q1 2024.
3. Expectations Are Tempered
Despite this eagerness to adopt AI, it seems IT professionals are tempering their expectations around its impact. Only 23% of IT professionals think that AI’s impact is higher than they expected six months ago. The rest felt that it was either moving slower than they expected (34%), delivering a lower impact than expected (22%), or hadn’t seen a change (21%).
This downtick in expectations is likely due to the initial hype that built up around AI’s newest LLM developments. As with many new technology developments, they came with rumors of job demise and proclamations of drastic change. Now that SMEs are full steam ahead in putting AI into use, it’s likely that these opinions are softening and IT professionals are looking at AI through a more realistic lens.
What Does This Mean for SMEs?
Overall, it seems the initial “AI fever” that ensued when the newest LLM developments hit the market is fading. In its wake is clear-eyed optimism around what AI can do, and what it probably won’t do.
What it can do: a tremendous amount when it comes to mining and making sense of large amounts of data, automating tedious tasks, and assisting with low-level code generation.
What it probably won’t do: take IT jobs. AI still requires a personal touch throughout its workflow, from the initial human-generated prompt to the post-generation review process.
While AI might not turn the world on its head, it offers significant benefits to SMEs when it comes to efficiency, productivity, and automation. With 90% of SMEs using or planning to use AI, choosing to ignore it would be choosing to fall behind. SMEs and their IT teams should look for ways to capitalize on what AI does best: mine big data, summarize information, automate manual tasks, generate low-level text and code, and assist IT teams by boosting productivity and efficiency.
More Hot Takes from SMEs and Their IT Teams
AI adoption is just one area that JumpCloud’s SME IT Trends report explores. We surveyed over 600 SME IT professionals about their experience with budgeting, working with vendors, security, and many more topics. To learn more about how your colleagues are approaching their work and the IT industry, download the full report.
