
Welcome to the AI Copilot Podcast, analyzing the latest AI Copilot and agent developments from Microsoft and its partners, delving into customer use cases, and exploring how AI plus Cloud helps customers reimagine business. In this episode, Tom Smith breaks down important findings from Stanford University’s AI Index Report.
Highlights
00:25 — The latest edition of Stanford University’s AI Index Report is literally packed with data, analysis and forward looking indicators around AI and GenAI. In this report, I’ll highlight key findings from the “Economy Chapter.”

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01:30 — Looking at AI use by industry and function — based on data from McKinsey —The greatest amount of AI use — and this refers to AI broadly, not just GenAI – is in the IT function in the tech industry, which came in at 48% of respondents. Next was product and/or service development, also in tech at 47% and marketing and sales within tech, also 47%.
Other functions and industries score highly in AI usage:
- Financial services had two functions — IT and service operations — come in at 40% AI usage
- Media and telecom is the second highest, with several functions at 40+% usage including service operations (43%), software engineering (at 40%), as well as IT at 40%
- Business legal and professional services, as well as consumer goods and retail, both registered 43% usage in terms of AI in marketing and sales functions

03:20 — In terms of revenue increases and cost savings from GenAI by function, big winners were
- Strategy and finance, where 70% of respondents reported revenue gains
- Supply chain and inventory management where 67% reported more revenue
- And marketing and sales, where 66% report revenue gains
In terms of cost savings, strategy and corporate finance and HR, supply chain and inventory management, and service operations were all big winners.

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