Research Reveals GenAI Push, Infrastructure Gaps

Chief information officers and other IT decision-makers are pushing to expand the use of generative AI (GenAI) at their organizations, new MeriTalk research shows.

In partnership with Dell Technologies and Intel, MeriTalk surveyed 300 IT decision-makers familiar with their organizations’ GenAI plans to explore infrastructure readiness, uncover challenges, and identify early insights for enabling secure, effective GenAI.

Over the next year, IT leaders expect sharp increases in GenAI use in data analysis and business intelligence, cybersecurity, and customer service, the survey found. They’re highly motivated to adopt the technology: 83 percent said their organization will fall behind their competition if they do not embrace GenAI. As a result, nearly 70 percent said GenAI will be a major factor in their infrastructure assessments going forward.

They have solid business reasons to accelerate GenAI adoption: Nearly 60 percent said it will deliver faster analysis and insights, while more than half expect productivity gains and more efficient customer service.

The benefits are clear, but many IT decision-makers see wide gaps between GenAI aspirations and their ability to support the swiftly advancing technology. Just 34 percent said their IT infrastructure is fully prepared to support their organization’s GenAI goals. Nearly 60 percent said GenAI adoption is outpacing their ability to implement necessary upgrades.

Their top infrastructure concern is security, followed by scalability and budget. These concerns reflect the reality of traditional architecture: It is not equipped for the GenAI wave, which will redefine how data is used, stored, transferred, and processed.

Eighty-three percent of all data sits on premises, and 50 percent of that data is generated at

the edge. For the sake of efficiency and security, GenAI must be brought to the data. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, so organizations will implement GenAI on local devices, at the edge, and in hyperscale data centers. An open ecosystem on modular architecture enables organizations to efficiently synthesize data where it resides, unlocking deeper understanding, optimized decision-making, and new opportunities for specific use cases.

The MeriTalk survey showed strong movement toward open, modular architectures among organizations that have successfully integrated GenAI – 41 percent have prioritized them. Leaders are also allocating specific budgets for GenAI projects, focusing on long-term strategy, and investing in high throughput, low latency network fabric.

From servers and storage to networking and data management, Dell Technologies’ comprehensive solutions can help organizations of all sizes implement AI-optimized infrastructure that provides a secure, scalable foundation for unlocking data insights, enhancing productivity, and redefining customer experiences.

For more insights, review the research.