Leveraging AI for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) : exploring real-world applications of AI in business

Abstract

The purpose of this bachelor thesis is to find out where artificial intelligence (AI) specifically could be applicable in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) when it comes to business fields such as retail, marketing, customer service, or similar crucial business operations. The current study's primary focus is to find out the possible AI applications in SMEs, the advantages, and most importantly challenges of AI adoption in SMEs by a mixed methods research approach adhering to literature review and case study. The findings of this study show the most used AI applications in SMEs include automated customer service, process automation, supply chain optimization, data analysis, and marketing optimization and automation. Besides, the research highlights one emerging application - AI-powered digital human that has the potential to revolutionize many industries. The benefits of each AI application in SMEs mentioned above were examined. The challenges such as high implementation costs and lack of technical expertise were also identified and discussed. The study concludes with recommendations for SMEs on how to successfully leverage AI technologies.