Despite groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) innovations and adoption in the business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) sectors, domestic companies lack confidence in the digital infrastructure and capabilities for AI adoption.

According to the '2023 Global Technology Trends Survey' by digital infrastructure solutions company Equinix, more than 7 out of 10 Korean IT leaders who participated in the survey (72%) responded that their IT infrastructure does not meet the level required for AI technology.

This figure is approximately 1.7 times higher than the global average (42%) and the Asia-Pacific average (44%), and the domestic IT industry has a strong need for AI technology application, but is greatly concerned about the lack of a foundation to meet this need.

75% of domestic IT leaders who participated in the survey responded that they are using or planning to use AI in IT operations, and 78% also responded that they are using or planning to use digital twin technology.

Additionally, more than half (55%) of domestic IT leaders responded that they are utilizing the technology to optimize operational performance, followed by quality management (38%) and system planning (36%). On the other hand, 22% of domestic leaders responded that they still have no plans to introduce digital twin technology.

The biggest obstacles to AI adoption in Korea were found to be operating costs (60%) and lack of internal knowledge (50%). Nevertheless, many domestic companies are still taking advantage of AI. The business areas in which domestic IT leaders are utilizing or planning to utilize AI were in the following order: △IT operations (75%) △Research and development (70%) △Cybersecurity (69%).

However, while 73% of global and Asia Pacific leaders are using AI in sales or plan to use it, only 47% of domestic IT leaders responded that they are using AI in sales or are considering using it in the future.

The areas in which AI is used in business are, in order, research and development (70%), cybersecurity (69%), customer experience (67%), contact center (65%), business management (63%), marketing (62%), human resource management (57%), e-commerce (55%), accounting and finance (54%), manufacturing (54%), sales (47%), and building maintenance.

Cost issues were often cited as a factor hindering the introduction of new technologies. 60% of domestic IT decision makers cited cost as a factor hindering the introduction of new technologies including AI. This was followed by lack of internal knowledge (50%), slow implementation speed (27%), negative impact on reputation (13%), increase in Scope 1/Scope 2 emissions (8%), and increase in Scope 3 emissions (8%).

The area that domestic IT leaders showed the most interest in when it comes to digital twins is operational performance (55%). △Quality control/management (38%) △System planning (36%) △Product development and redesign (23%) △Predictive maintenance (27%) △Logistics planning (17%) followed.

71% of domestic digital leaders responded that they are not satisfied with the ability of their teams to accept the increasing use of AI, which is also significantly higher than the global average (41%) and the Asia-Pacific average (45%).

“Over the past year, AI technology has advanced dramatically, and in particular, generative AI has been widely adopted,” said Jang Hye-deok, Equinix Korea representative. “In the past, domestic companies were recognized for their fast technological prowess, but now it is important to accelerate digital transformation.”

Meanwhile, the research report was conducted from March 8 to April 7, 2023, targeting more than 2,900 IT decision makers in 29 markets, including 100 domestic IT decision makers.