Zoom and PhysicsX: AI at the Heart of Business Transformation

From Enthusiasm to Impact: AI as a Growth Driver

As the initial excitement for artificial intelligence (AI) fades, companies are now focusing on its large-scale integration. The goal is to move from isolated experiments to widespread adoption that transforms internal operations. Automating routine tasks and enhancing customer interactions are at the heart of this transition. Companies are looking to integrate AI throughout their operations rather than limiting themselves to one-off use cases.

During a Sifted Talks panel, experts discussed how AI can be used to strengthen customer interactions and improve internal processes. Among the speakers were Monique Koster from Zoom, James Mulligan from PhysicsX, Emma Burrows from Portia AI, and Harriet Allardyce from Sellmyride. These experts shared their experiences and strategies for effectively collaborating with AI and strengthening connections between customers and teams.

What Makes a Company "AI-Focused"?

Monique Koster, Head of Small Business EMEA at Zoom, explains that AI-focused companies are not necessarily those with the most sophisticated tools. On the contrary, they are the ones that have managed to seamlessly integrate AI into their operations. At Zoom, AI is not a superficial addition but an integral part of daily functioning. For instance, during meetings, AI prepares the context and captures essential information, illustrating a true integration of technology.

Emma Burrows, co-founder and CTO at Portia AI, emphasizes the importance of identifying pain points in workflows to develop effective AI solutions. She warns against the risk of remaining in pilot mode without a real long-term strategy. According to her, it is crucial to understand where future bottlenecks will arise to avoid failures and ensure the sustainability of AI strategies.

The Crucial Importance of Data

Data management is a major issue for AI adoption. Emma Burrows recommends promoting informal sharing of best practices rather than relying on overly strict policies that can hinder adoption. Clear safeguards are necessary to prevent access to incorrect or sensitive data, but a too rigid approach can slow progress.

James Mulligan, Head of Strategy at PhysicsX, explains that their approach relies on physics-based models, requiring the creation of specific data to improve the accuracy of simulations. Unlike large language models that rely on millions of data points extracted from the internet, PhysicsX creates its own data to train its models. This method allows for the prediction of complex phenomena, such as aerodynamics, without pre-existing data, but it can also create a bottleneck.

Overcoming Skepticism Around AI

At PhysicsX, AI adoption has occurred through "shadow AI," where employees use AI without formal approval, thereby demonstrating its value. This approach allows engineers to become ambassadors for AI within the organization. James Mulligan emphasizes that "shadow AI" is a strong signal of AI's usefulness, as it shows that employees see real value in its use.

During the initial deployment of the technology, PhysicsX also established an "experimental budget," allowing employees to receive $200 to use on a Claude Max account. This initiative aimed to encourage exploration and adoption of AI within the company.

Harriet Allardyce, Head of Customer Success at Sellmyride, uses AI to analyze customer feedback, thereby improving training and forecasting relationships. She highlights the importance of centralizing AI usage to avoid silos and maximize impact on the business. AI is used to provide feedback on customer calls, allowing for the verification of subjective impressions with objective analyses and improving the accuracy of relational forecasts.

Measuring and Proving the Value of AI

To demonstrate the effectiveness of an AI tool, Monique Koster recommends linking its use to a concrete problem within the company. This allows for a clear demonstration of AI's added value, particularly in terms of time and resource savings. Harriet Allardyce adds that centralizing AI maximizes the number of people who benefit from it, thereby avoiding silos and facilitating the presentation of concrete results to executives.

At Sellmyride, with the majority of clients and employees based in the United States, AI helps overcome challenges related to differences in platforms and teams. The integration of a centralized CRM and the use of AI to share meeting summaries eliminate much of the verbal communication, as everything is supported by data. This proves the value of AI by connecting technology to specific pain points, which is essential for explaining its value to employees and executives.