Data-powered Innovation Review | Wave 9

Wave 9 Foreword Looking at the frozen spheres that grace thepages of this magazine, I’m reminded of thedelicate and balancing future of data and AI.There’s a fragile beauty in that stillness, yetincredible energy and potential exists beneaththe surface. The imagery resonates deeply withwhere we are today – on the edge of somethingextraordinary but requiring careful thought andresponsibility to navigate. This edition of the Data-powered Innovation Reviewexplores the power of generative AI, data platforms,and other emerging technologies – all of which havethe potential to transform industries, optimizeprocesses, and drive new avenues of growth. But wealso face a profound challenge: How do we harnessthis power without allowing it to overrun the verysystems that make our innovations possible? As muchas we’re excited by what AI can do, we should notignore the financial and environmental costs thatcome with it. Turning towards 2025, it is more important thanever to strike a balance between these seeminglycompeting forces. Readers will uncover many balancing acts in thisedition. Combining the “hunches” of generative AIwith the contextual, “symbolic” power of knowledgegraphs, for example, but also a fascinating deep diveinto how data and AI can create a thriving “blueeconomy” around the oceans while preserving andimproving maritime life. And then there’s the impactof generative AI on life sciences: transforming drugdiscovery and clinical trials but also prompting us toconsider the environmental and ethical implicationsof how we scale this technology. Finally, there’sthe balancing act that data professionals have toface: leveraging AI and automation for the entiresolutions lifecycle while rediscovering the role ofthe human expert in this newly defined loop. As we navigate the future, let us carry forwardthe lessons of balance and care, just as the frozenspheres rest calmly in a winter landscape. Here’sto a new year of thoughtful innovation, ethicaladvancement, and sustainability. May 2025 bringyou success, inspiration, and a sense of purposein all you do. Niraj Parihar Chief Executive Officer,Insights and Data, Capgemini It’s one of the centerpieces of this edition, whichin a way itself is a broad, landscape-orientationphotograph of where we currently stand withdata and what topics have the top of mindsharewhen thinking about the near future. Obviously, there’s still a lot of enthusiasm forgenerative AI - both within a growing communityof practitioners working with it daily and in mostenterprise boardrooms. But as we already sawhalfway through 2024, enterprise-scale realismhas kicked in, and much more balancing takesplace between potentially conflicting forcessuch as the actual business value and benefits,the cost of AI computing, sustainability impact,legal and regulatory implications, manageability,and the overall confidence level around AI. You’llfind many of these juggling acts tackled in thisedition, together – of course - with considerationsabout what comes after generative AI (hint: itsure seems to look “agentic”). Ron Tolido Is it all about generative AI then these days?Gladly not. There is plenty of attention paid todata platforms and their architecture, and thiscertainly seems a signpost for much more tocome in 2025. Then, as always, there is a placefor technology and sustainability, exemplified bythe introduction of our new Global Data ScienceChallenge – this time in collaboration withUNESCO - and an interesting article co-authoredwith Heidi Karlsson from The Open Group aboutthe role of data an AI in the blue economy. Chief Technology Officer,Insights and Data, Capgemini Every new edition of the Data-poweredInnovation Review is special to us. Making itnever fails to inspire us to flex our innovationmuscles, brainstorm compelling data and AItopics, reach out to the right people – insideand outside the company – and simply spark abunch of fresh, forward-looking activities whiledoing so. The latter topic is also covered in a new podcastseries that we have set up as a companion tothis magazine. The Data-powered InnovationJam has a special way of addressing new,inspirational themes around data, analytics,AI, and all that data jazz. Together with myco-host Robert Engels, I have a certain (albeitobscure) background in music, and we try toweave elements from rock, soul, pop, and jazzinto the discussions with our external guests.Combine it with the special AI myth-bustingpowers of co-host Weiwei Feng, and we mighthave something interesting for you. Try it outon your preferred podcast channel:https://www.capgemini.com/insights/research-library/data-powered-innovation-jam-podcast/. Still, this 9thedition, published right before 2025starts, is even more special. It’s the time of the yearin which many businesses contemplate the pastperiod and, even more so, put together their vision,perspectives, and plans for the new year. And thistime, just what a remarkable year it promises to be.Whether we call it