KUALA LUMPUR (May 24): Developments like artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud storage has changed not only how companies from large multinational corporations (MNCs) to even small family-owned startups operate, but also how businesses invest and communicate.

Hakon Bruaset Kjol, the senior vice president and head of investment management of Telenor Asia, said that when it comes to adopting these trending technologies including AI, it is important for businesses to know how it relates to their business.

Kjol was speaking at the panel entitled Corporate Disruption - How Family-Owned Corporations & MNCs Prepare for Disruption at the DisruptInvest Summit 2024 held at the Etiqa Twins, Kuala Lumpur City Centre on Thursday.

This is a modal window.

Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.

End of dialog window.

“[We look at it] through two lenses,” said Kjol, “the first, is what will this tech do for your customer? There’s no point looking at it without that perspective. Secondly, what will it do for your business? Not just in terms of costs, but simplification [of your operations].”

This was the philosophy for Telenor Asia for 30 years, said Kjol. At its core, he told businesses looking into adopting this technology to ensure it is linked to the core of their business and avoid making decisions to adopt technology just for the tech itself.

“The new way of implementing technology is changing a lot. The amount of automation today like self-service and zero-touch took away some jobs but gave new opportunities for jobs and is scalable. We are seeing in a way the emergence of new waves of disruption in how we work.”

“We can easily be dazzled by the latest trends,” added Karren Lau, chief operating officer of Sunway iLabs.

She explained that for Sunway, technology adoption is based on long-term goals, and what it can do for them for the next 20 years. Lau noted that implementing disruptive technology for Sunway’s sustainability goals translated to potential millions in savings down the road.
 
This is encouraged on the employee side as not using this new technology for sustainability will affect their annual bonus, said Lau.

Wong Chiun Chiek, the director of Bursa Intelligence, noted the disparity in the access to information that disruptive technology has brought for those businesses seeking investment or those investing.

With everything being online, technology like AI allows those who know how to use it quick access to those who struggle or have yet to adopt the new technology.

“[This] gives some investors an edge over the others like the moms and pops,” said Wong. To counter this, he noted how Bursa Intelligence spread social media campaigns and held financial literacy courses for these investors to level the information field.

https://www.theedgemarkets.com/node/712933