Read the newest State of AI report | Retool Blog | Cache
Key takeaway
- For entrepreneurs: Despite the hype, AI adoption is moderate, with most companies still in early stages; focus on practical, high-ROI use cases rather than chasing trends.
- For investors: While AI investment is growing, the market is still maturing; look for companies developing tools that address key pain points like model accuracy, data security, and resource allocation.
Summary
The Retool Team's "State of AI" report for H1 2024 provides a comprehensive overview of AI adoption, use cases, and technology stacks based on a survey of 750 tech professionals. The report reveals that while AI sentiment remains cautiously optimistic, adoption is more moderate than media narratives suggest. Companies are primarily focusing on internal use cases, with code writing and knowledge base Q&A leading the way. OpenAI's models dominate the market, but there's growing interest in model customization and vector databases. The report also highlights challenges in AI development, including model accuracy, data security, and resource allocation.
Insights
- AI sentiment remains slightly overrated, with most respondents rating it around 5-6 out of 10
- Only 9.8% of companies consider themselves "flying" in terms of AI adoption, down from 13.4% in 2023
- 74% of respondents use AI tools at least weekly, with Product and Engineering teams leading adoption
- Support chatbots are only the third most popular internal use case, behind code writing and knowledge base Q&A
- OpenAI models dominate, used by 76.7% of AI users, but interest in other providers like Anthropic is growing
- 63.6% of respondents use vector databases, a significant increase from 20% in 2023
- GPU allocation and ROI remain unclear for many companies, with 52.3% unsure if their resources are allocated correctly
Implications
- Companies need to focus on practical, high-ROI AI use cases rather than following hype
- There's a growing need for tools and expertise to address AI development challenges, particularly in model accuracy and data security
- The AI stack is still evolving, creating opportunities for new tools and platforms to emerge
- Businesses should invest in upskilling employees to leverage AI effectively, as it's becoming a competitive advantage
- As AI adoption matures, there may be a shift towards more specialized and custom AI solutions