The Financial Times quoted more than 90 percent of the largest media and entertainment companies in the United States as confirming this year that fast-growing artificial intelligence systems pose a business risk, as do 86 percent of software and technology groups.
The newspaper also noted that more than two-thirds of the telecommunications companies listed on the Fortune 500 list and more than half of the companies in health care, financial services, retail, consumer products and aerospace issued the same warning to investors.
For example, Netflix warned that competitors could outpace it by deploying artificial intelligence, which would affect “our ability to compete effectively and our results of operations could be adversely affected,” the newspaper added.
Motorola Communications Group was quoted as saying: “AI may not always work as intended and data sets may be insufficient or contain illegal, biased, harmful or offensive information, which could negatively impact its profits and reputation.”
She noted that some companies have addressed the financial risks associated with the advanced use of AI systems, such as increasing and unexpected costs.
Salesforce, a software company valued at about $250 billion, said its embrace of AI “raises emerging ethical issues” around data collection and privacy. It said its profit margins could be affected by “uncertainty” around emerging AI applications, meaning it would likely have to invest more in developing and testing new models.
The newspaper pointed out that the legal, regulatory and cybersecurity risks related to artificial intelligence are also common topics among Fortune 500 companies.
Entertainment giant Disney was quoted as warning that “the rules governing new technology developments” such as generative AI “remain fluid,” which could impact its current business model such as revenue streams for using its intellectual property and how entertainment products are created.
Viatris Pharmaceuticals, which was spun off from Pfizer, also warned that the use of AI solutions by employees or suppliers “may lead to the public disclosure of confidential information,” as well as “unauthorized access” to personal data relating to employees, clinical trial participants or others, according to the newspaper.
The Financial Times concluded that among the few companies that promoted artificial intelligence, they said: Generative artificial intelligence works to improve parts of the business such as customer service, sample processing and claims analysis.
