Salesforce India CEO Highlights Benefits of AI and Its Practical Applications

What is the function of artificial intelligence in human activities? Does it involve commanding and controlling or assisting in achieving objectives? One perspective suggests a helpful AI, while the other implies potential risks. Addressing this matter on Friday, Arundhati Bhattacharya, CEO of Salesforce India, stated that artificial intelligence and generative technology primarily serve as assistants rather than independent entities.

He added that currently a human is always involved in the operation of artificial intelligence, and it is difficult to say whether it will work independently in the future.

“It’s more of an assistant now. We haven’t gotten to the point where we can allow it to (operate autonomously) … whether it will become fully autonomous at some point is very hard to say now,” he said.

He added that generative AI brings affordability and, unlike blockchain and crypto, has specific use cases to solve problems.

Addressing cloud-related data issues in regulated industries such as banking, finance and insurance (BFSI), Bhattacharya said data localization and compliance changed the scope of Salesforce’s operations.

“Prior to 2020, we didn’t get into regulated industries, which changed when we started localizing data. Another thing we’ve done is strengthen our compliance function so we can provide comprehensive answers to all inquiries from CSOs from different organizations,” he said.

Salesforce is looking to expand its workforce, with Bhattacharya saying, “There are hiring plans for India, but whether it’s next-generation AI or other areas, it’s hard to say at this point. We know the plans are there, and we certainly will. hire.”

Salesforce also released its State of IT report, which surveyed 4,325 decision-makers – senior executives or higher – from 29 countries and six continents.

The survey was conducted from 28 February to 5 April 2023 and received 300 responses from Indian IT leaders.

While 87 percent of Indian IT leaders said the role of AI in their organizations is well defined, this number is on the rise, with 95 percent of those surveyed believing that generative AI will soon play a “significant role” in their workplace.

About 82 percent of IT professionals are concerned about the ethics of generative artificial intelligence.