In Italy, the Artificial Intelligence market reached a volume of approximately 422 million euros in 2022 (+21.9%) and, between 2022 and 2025, AI is expected to reach 700 million in 2025 with a average annual growth rate of 22%. This was revealed by the data of Anitec-Assinform, the Confindustria association which brings together information and communication technology companies. AI, along with other market enablers (digital enabler) such as cybersecurity, big data and the cloud, will be an extraordinary driving force for the development of the Italian digital market.
AI little used by SMEs
Despite its potential, artificial intelligence is still scarcely used by Italian companies, especially smaller ones: according to Istat data for 2021, only 6.2% of companies said they use AI systems, against an average of 8% in the European Union; in particular, the percentage of small businesses stands at 5.3%, against 24.3% of large businesses. However, according to OECD data, investments in risk capital, research and the number of talents related to artificial intelligence continue to register a positive increase, even if, also in this case, much lower than in neighboring countries such as Germany or France.
Towards Esg standards
«Artificial intelligence applied to business, in the common imagination, is often associated with activities linked to the giants of the tech sector», explained Giovanni Baroni, president of Piccola Industria of Confindustria: «It is instead important to understand how this discipline is within of all businesses. In fact, it can be applied in any industrial reality, regardless of size, and ensure benefits in terms of lower costs and greater efficiency, also contributing to the achievement of ESG criteria that are increasingly in demand by the market and investors. To seize this opportunity, however, it is necessary to support our SMEs in the digital transition. It is a complex process, elaborated through interdependent technologies and above all skills, mental attitude and the ability to transform».
The question of skills
Baroni then added: «In this context, then, the Italian lag in terms of professionals and students in STEM subjects is a gap that we can no longer afford and which risks weighing more and more on the development and growth of the country, subtracting businesses the human capital necessary to be competitive”.
The necessary investments
Marco Gay, President of Anitec-Assinform, commented: «Investments in digital transformation enablers, such as artificial intelligence, are vital for innovation, to support business resilience and enable new business models as well as transform supply chains and ecosystems in all sectors. THE digital enabler, on the one hand, allow companies to better understand and monitor processes and, on the other, to produce advanced products with new functions thanks to a deep integration between physical and digital. SMEs represent 99% of our entrepreneurial fabric, but still invest too little in digital, with lower growth than other business segments: we must seize this moment and the opportunities of the Pnrr to push the accelerator on innovation, to recover points of productivity, strengthen our industrial chains and remain industrial leaders in the world. We are convinced that starting from the territory, from the direct and concrete comparison between and with small and medium-sized enterprises, we can make a difference and encourage a conscious adoption of AI».