Honeywell (NASDAQ: HON) has released the results of its Industrial AI Insights global survey, revealing the state of the artificial intelligence (AI) field. While only 17 percent of global decision makers have fully implemented their initial AI initiatives, more than 90 percent of respondents said they are finding more unexpected new use cases, whether in the prototyping, start-up, or scale-up phases of AI implementations.

ADV169-P00 The survey also found that they all highly respect AI applications in the industrial sector, and enthusiasm for further investment in AI is generally high, with 94% of respondents saying they plan to expand their use of AI.

“There is no doubt that AI is at a critical juncture in its development.” “With the advent of generative AI and advanced analytics providing more data sources, industrial AI is poised for exponential growth,” said Kevin Dehoff, Honeywell’s chief strategy officer. “The possibilities for increasing revenue and employee satisfaction are limitless.”

AI unlocks workplace advantages

When it comes to the impact of AI on the workplace, nearly two-thirds (64%) of respondents cite increased efficiency and productivity as one of the top advantages. 60% of respondents said AI improves cybersecurity and threat detection. 59% of respondents said they generate real-time data to optimize decisions.

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But many also mentioned a few other advantages they considered, including:
• Increased flexibility (49%)
• Increased job satisfaction (45%)
• More time for skills development and creative thinking (44%)
Improving workplace safety (39%)

ADV169-P00 With a wave of retirements looming and a shortage of young workers, skills development is critical to today’s economy. AI can help employers promote and retrain employees faster. AI will drive industrial change, enabling employees to perform higher levels of work and have higher job satisfaction, while increasing productivity and addressing skills shortages.

As an example, Lucian Boldea, president and CEO of Honeywell Intelligent Industrial Technologies, said: “Processing and manufacturing products can require thousands of instruments, equipment and valves, and many of the components we provide to manufacturers require experienced technicians to operate and maintain them, but these skilled technicians are increasingly scarce.” Through AI training or using AI as an ‘assistive tool’, the skills of less experienced technicians can be upgraded more quickly, allowing them to become industry experts who can perform tasks based on the company’s knowledge and best practices. In turn, the plant significantly reduces human error and makes operations safer and more reliable.”