Atleast 76 per cent of Indian enterprises intend to boost investments in Gen AI to enhance sustainability efforts, according to a study by IBM.

Organisations in India that embed sustainability are 41 per cent more likely to attribute great improvement in revenue from their sustainability efforts and are 90 per cent more likely to outperform their peers on profitability.

The study further found that spending on sustainability reporting exceeds spending on sustainability innovation by 38 per cent in India indicating demand for solutions that facilitate efficient data management and reporting. Embedding sustainability into all operations will bridge the intent-impact gap for long-term value creation in business.

“In today’s business world, sustainability has evolved from being optional to indispensable. With AI reshaping industries, integrating sustainability into core business practices add to the long-term value creation. The commitment of businesses to invest in Gen AI for sustainability signals a promising move towards a greener, more prosperous future,” said Sandip Patel, Managing Director, IBM India Private Limited.

Also read: Why India Inc is slow to adopt AI tech 

In India, 78 per cent executives surveyed agree that sustainability drives better business results, and 68 per cent agree that sustainability is central to their business strategy. At the same time, 62 per cent say that sustainability needs to be a higher priority in their organisation.

Further, 86 per cent of executive respondents agree that high-quality data and transparency are necessary to achieve sustainability outcomes. A lack of requisite skills was identified as the top barrier to sustainability progress by 44 per cent executives.

At least 63 per cent of executives surveyed agree that generative AI will be important for their sustainability efforts. Organisations that embed sustainability spend slightly less on dedicated sustainability efforts as a share of their revenue compared to organisations that don’t embed.

At a global level, these organisations are also 191 per cent more likely to have aligned their data and sustainability strategies to a great extent, and 80 per cent more likely to be using AI for sustainability to a great extent. Only 28 per cent of Indian executives surveyed are incorporating sustainability data and insights into operational improvements to a great extent. Almost half (47 per cent) of Indian organisations still struggle to fund sustainability investments, said the report.

Related Topics