For Hoai Thu Nguyen Doan, senior economist at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, AI and Big Data present many business benefits, however, at the cost of organizational changes.
In December 2022, the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce published its brochure “Artificial Intelligence & Big Data: a guide to navigating the future Luxembourg ‘data-driven economy'”.
The document aims to explain the concepts of Big Data, artificial intelligence and data-driven economy as simply as possible. It presents the main benefits and challenges, especially for Luxembourg, of integrating artificial intelligence into production processes. Finally, it proposes recommendations to support Luxembourg companies in their transition to the country’s “data-driven economy”.
According to a PwC study cited in the document, companies in the Grand Duchy are increasingly aware of the power of data collection and analysis. The same study even states that “more than three-quarters of Luxembourg companies surveyed in 2021 were using artificial intelligence, planning to do so or thinking about it”.
Hoai Thu Nguyen Doan, how did the idea for this guide come about?
The Chamber of Commerce works a lot for the digitalization of companies, which can increase their competitiveness. Nowadays, if they want to survive, they must use digital tools.
We carry out several actions, including awareness and support on the ground. For example, through the House of Entrepreneurship, which offers its digital program (the “SME Digital Packages”): experts meet and raise awareness among companies, especially SMEs, about the challenges of digital transformation, and then accompany them in this process.
They carry out an initial diagnosis, then make recommendations for actions that can be deployed effectively, quickly and at a lower cost. The House of Entrepreneurship will also help them in their application for government subsidies for digitalization.
In this context, how does artificial intelligence help these SMEs?
Artificial intelligence and data-related technologies are a consequence of digitalization: it is the next step applied to the processing and management of large volumes of data and information.
Take GPS, Google Maps, weather and traffic applications, which compile a lot of data to provide their users with information about the weather and the best route to take. Or the recommendation engines on shopping sites. Or chatbots. All these tools are part of our daily life, but most people don’t realize it and don’t make the link with artificial intelligence. For most of them, artificial intelligence still means robot, so a complicated tool.
“Numerical studies show that lack of knowledge and staff are the primary barriers to digitization and implementation of data-related tools.”
Hoai Thu Nguyen Doan, senior economist at the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce
Faced with this lack of knowledge, what does your guide propose?
First of all, concrete, pragmatic concepts without technical terms. To do this, we interviewed many Luxembourgish players in the field and questioned company managers of all sizes and startups – all active in various sectors and professions – about the difficulties they encountered in implementing artificial intelligence solutions, but also about the benefits they achieved for their activities.
I think that companies must be prepared for this world of data, which is already present when they reinforce the digitalization of their organization and processes. A current example that shows that companies will have to go through the digitalization process: is e-invoicing, which will become mandatory for all companies from March 18, 2023, in the B2G.
We, therefore, invite them to find out more about this subject right away. Because sooner or later, they will certainly have to face legal obligations in this area, as they are currently doing with the RGPD. The RGPD is about data regulation. And artificial intelligence is nothing less than a tool to exploit this data.
We, therefore, recommend that companies already look at and list the data they produce with digitalization, then organize and label it, so that it is clean and valuable in the future when they want to implement artificial intelligence solutions.
If they start now, it will be cheaper and more efficient than if they accumulate everything in a big box. And then, a few years later, they say ‘well, how do we sort and use all this’. The data piles up very quickly and it’s easy to get overwhelmed.
So we suggest meeting with data experts (data stewards) if necessary. And before spending money, we also invite them to consult their industry federations (like the Chamber of Commerce, FEDIL, horesca…), to get informed. We also invite them to strengthen their cybersecurity.
Companies of all sizes and in all sectors are therefore concerned. They must start learning about artificial intelligence and Big Data. Because the technological revolution around these technologies is already here. The early starters will have an advantage. The followers a little less. While companies that do not follow the movement will not be able to ensure their competitiveness in an increasingly digitalized economy.
What is holding companies back from adopting artificial intelligence?
Numerical studies show that lack of knowledge and staff are the primary barriers to digitization and implementation of data-related tools.
According to the study “Use of data analytics and Artificial Intelligence” conducted in 2021 by PwC in Luxembourg, the three biggest reasons that prevent Grand Ducal companies (all sectors) from implementing artificial intelligence tools are the lack of qualified personnel (cited by 58% of companies), the lack of knowledge of the technology (48%), and the lack of visibility regarding the return on investment of artificial intelligence projects (30%).
In addition, employee resistance to the implementation of artificial intelligence tools seems to be a major challenge for nearly a third of large companies. Finally, the lack of financial resources is a problem for 36% of firms from the financial sector.
How mature is Luxembourg in terms of being a data-driven economy?
The country has favorable assets: a national strategic vision, well established infrastructures such as its 5G network, its very robust datacenters and the MeluXina supercomputer, which are key elements of its data economy strategy. For its part, the University of Luxembourg offers special data training programs.
Luxembourg is working on integrating digital and new technology skills into school curricula from an early age, with the initiative “einfach digital – Zukunftskompetenze fir staark Kanner”.
It is also already involved in numerous innovative and ambitious initiatives in the field of Big Data. These include GaiaX, which aims to build a secure European data infrastructure, and the project to design a Luxembourg sovereign cloud.
Finally, Luxembourg has a well-developed system of federations and clusters that closely follow sectoral developments and to which companies can turn for support in their digital or economic transitions.
For example, the Chamber of Commerce carries out a permanent economic and legal watch, gives its opinion on draft laws, publishes informative documents (guides on cybersecurity and electronic invoicing, etc.), and organizes services (such as Go Digital) and events (such as the Ready4AI conference series) to support companies in their adoption of new technologies.
What will be the follow-up of these surveys: a next guide perhaps?
We will continue to monitor the subject. Our legal department is closely following what is happening with the laws and the Data Act.
Other Chamber of Commerce initiatives:
