As Artificial Intelligence (AI) and cloud computing revolutionize business, companies struggle to adapt swiftly. Deloitte’s “State of Generative AI Report (India Perspective)” finds that while 89% of Indian firms anticipate that Generative AI will reshape their operations within three years, only 25% feel well-prepared in areas like risk management, governance, and talent acquisition. This highlights a significant gap between expectation and readiness.
To shed more light on the matter, Aditya Khaitan, a partner at Deloitte India with two decades of consulting experience across more than 25 countries, speaks with CIO&Leader. He discusses how Deloitte’s Centre for Innovation and Technology fosters industry collaboration, aligns with government initiatives on AI and cybersecurity, and supports the growth of start-ups in India. His insights shed light on how organizations can navigate the promises and challenges of emerging technologies.
Deloitte India
CIO&Leader: How does Deloitte’s Centre for Innovation and Technology (DCIT) foster collaboration across industries, especially in cloud computing? Are there any specific use cases you can share?
Aditya Khaitan: At Deloitte, we view cloud computing as a means to improve business operations. Through our Centre for Innovation and Technology, we’ve adopted a software-as-a-service model, limiting on-premises deployments to specific needs. We collaborate with various partners to demonstrate vertical solutions coupled with cloud infrastructure relevant to clients. We’ve showcased use cases in customer analytics, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and 5G technology.
The agility of cloud computing enables large-scale transformations. At DCIT, clients experience solutions that address key business challenges. We focus on accelerating business transformations by applying industry and domain expertise, coupled with cloud and deep-tech capabilities, through modern delivery methods.
CIO&Leader: How is this innovation centre aligning with the government’s vision for technology and innovation leadership in areas such as AI and cybersecurity? Are there plans to expand and open more such centres?
Aditya Khaitan: One of our core themes at DCIT is ‘India for India and India for the world.’ We concentrate on addressing significant challenges across sectors. We help clients envision new possibilities, offering innovative perspectives and practical solutions. By being at the forefront of emerging technologies like artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and space technology, we aim to ‘do more, do better, and do it faster.’
Furthermore, in line with our core theme Government & Public Sector remains a key focus. At the Centre, we leverage technology (e.g. on-prem vs. cloud SaaS) and context (e.g. partnerships that focus on preferential market access) to demonstrate solutions which would be relevant to governments vision.
CIO&Leader: With the increasing adoption of 5G technology, what opportunities do you see for sectors like retail and manufacturing in leveraging AI and data analytics? How is Deloitte’s Centre for Innovation and Technology positioned to capitalise on these opportunities?
Aditya Khaitan: We have utilised 5G as an enabler to unlock spectrum of use cases showcasing the power of advanced connectivity. The use-cases demonstrate the private vs hybrid network deployment models, edge vs. cloud models spanning across enhanced broadband, massive machine type (with IOT connectivity for devices) and ultra-low latency; high-reliability capabilities.For example, we have holography use-cases focussed on Customer (Retail) relevant for in-store experience; client excellence initiatives and at the same time Autonomous Operations use-cases on manufacturing enabled through 5G leveraging different network slices (connection attributes).
CIO&Leader: How has the integration of technologies like GPT-4 and LaMDA enhanced the experience for both clients and Deloitte in terms of cloud services and data solutions?
Aditya Khaitan: Large language models (LLMs) like GPT-4 and LaMDA have improved natural language understanding, allowing for handling complex user instructions and generating visuals from text prompts. Clients get to experience these new age technologies, which are transforming work processes, at first hand. At DCIT, for instance, an industrial copilot provides actionable guidance to operators on the factory floor. Industrial Copilots empower field operators by combining AI capabilities with human expertise, leading to more efficient and sustainable operations.
CIO&Leader: How does Deloitte’s Centre for Innovation and Technology support the growth of start-ups and emerging businesses in India, particularly in the realms of AI? Can you provide examples of how these collaborations have benefited both parties?
Aditya Khaitan: Increased consumer expectations, global connectivity, digitization, and data are changing the way enterprises compete and behave. Companies that thrive in this constantly shifting environment collaborate with the world’s leading technology providers to address complex operational and business challenges and meet new market needs. We believe that strategic collaboration, including with start-ups, helps companies anticipate and shape future markets. Our ecosystem of alliances and start-ups supports this vision. We run several start-up programmes like Catalyst, Morning Pitch, and Launchpad, both globally and in India, to co-innovate and develop new business ideas.
CIO&Leader: What specific technological solutions does Deloitte’s Centre for Innovation and Technology offer for sectors like automotive, healthcare, and financial services in the areas of cloud and data? Can you share use cases illustrating how these solutions have been customised to meet the needs of different industries?
Aditya Khaitan: Our Centre for Innovation and Technology offers clients a combination of physical and digital experiences as they imagine and develop customer interactions and facilities for competitive advantage. We work with clients across sectors, including consumer; financial services and insurance; life sciences and healthcare; government and public sector; telecom, media, and technology; and energy, resources, and industrial products. DCIT enables us to collaborate on solutions to the challenges as it has been designed in such a way that we are continuously evolving and adapting to bring in the “art of the new”.