Business & IT · Vol. XIV(2) · 2024
Adoption and Impact of Generative AI: Perspectives from South African Tech Entrepreneurs
Abstract
Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) has emerged as a transformative force in the technological landscape, revolutionizing various industries and reshaping the way businesses operate. This trend shows the power of AI in transforming business and industrial processes. The advent of Generative AI, in particular, has revolutionized business operations by enabling machines to create content, predict trends, and automate complex tasks. Despite the growing adoption of AI, a notable gap exists in the literature concerning the detailed exploration of the day-to-day use of generative AI among tech entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs, especially in the tech space, are vital drivers of innovation and economic growth. They create new products and services and push the boundaries of what is possible with technology, often leading to the development of entirely new industries. To understand how entrepreneurs adopt the use of generative AI technologies, we employed a qualitative research design. The study involved in-depth interviews with 15 tech entrepreneurs who actively use generative AI tools in their businesses. The findings reveal that generative AI significantly enhances content creation, design, software development, customer engagement, and prototyping processes. However, challenges such as quality control, originality, and the need for human oversight were also identified. The findings suggest that while generative AI offers substantial benefits, including time and cost savings, the technology also requires careful management to ensure alignment with business goals and ethical standards. These insights underscore the importance of a balanced approach that combines automation with human expertise, providing valuable guidance for tech entrepreneurs and policymakers in leveraging AI for sustainable growth and innovation.
Keywords
Generative AI, artificial intelligence, tech entrepreneurs, technology adoption
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How to cite (APA)
Murimo Bethel Mutanga, Zvinodaishe Revesai, Jotham Msane (2024). Adoption and Impact of Generative AI: Perspectives from South African Tech Entrepreneurs. Business & IT, Vol. XIV(2), pp. 11–22. https://doi.org/10.14311/bit.2024.02.02