Generative AI Overview

Editor’s Note: AI Cloud, Einstein GPT, and other cloud GPT products are now Einstein. For the latest on Salesforce Einstein

The Rise of Generative AI: What It Means for Business and CRM

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) made headlines in late 2022, sparking widespread curiosity and questions about its potential impact on various industries.

What is Generative AI? Generative AI is a technology that creates new content—such as poetry, emails, images, or music—based on a set of input data. Unlike traditional AI, which focuses on classifying or predicting, generative AI can produce novel content with a human-like understanding of language, as noted by Salesforce Chief Scientist Silvio Savarese.

However, successful generative AI depends on the quality of the input data. “AI is only as good as the data you give it, and you must ensure that datasets are representative,” emphasizes Paula Goldman, Salesforce’s Chief Ethical and Humane Use Officer.

How Does Generative AI Work? Generative AI can be developed using several deep learning approaches, including:

Generative Adversarial Networks (GANs): These consist of two neural networks—a generator and a discriminator—that compete with each other. The generator creates outputs based on input, while the discriminator evaluates their authenticity, leading to improved results over time.
Transformers: Models like ChatGPT use sequential data (e.g., sentences) to generate or translate text, efficiently handling context and continuity in language.

Other methods include Variational Autoencoders (VAEs) and Neural Radiance Fields (NeRFs), which generate new data or create 2D and 3D images based on sample data.

Generative AI and Business Generative AI has captured the attention of global business leaders. A recent Salesforce survey found that 67% of IT leaders are focusing on generative AI in the next 18 months, with 33% considering it a top priority.

Salesforce has long been exploring generative AI applications. For instance, CodeGen helps transform simple English prompts into executable code, and LAVIS makes language-vision AI accessible to researchers. More recently, Salesforce’s ProGen project demonstrated the creation of novel proteins using AI, potentially advancing medicine and treatment development.

Ketan Karkhanis, Salesforce’s Executive VP and GM of Sales Cloud, highlights that generative AI benefits not just large enterprises but also small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) by automating proposals, customer communications, and predictive sales modeling.

Challenges and Ethical Considerations Despite its potential, generative AI poses risks, as noted by Paula Goldman and Kathy Baxter of Salesforce’s Ethical AI practice. They stress the importance of responsible innovation to ensure that generative AI is used safely and ethically. Accuracy in AI recommendations is crucial, and the authoritative tone of models like ChatGPT can sometimes lead to misleading results.

Salesforce is committed to building trusted AI with embedded guardrails to prevent misuse. As generative AI evolves, it’s vital to balance its capabilities with ethical considerations, including its environmental impact. Generative AI can increase IT energy use, which 71% of IT leaders acknowledge.

Generative AI at Salesforce Salesforce has integrated AI into its platform for years, with Einstein AI providing billions of daily predictions to enhance sales, service, and customer understanding. The recent launch of Einstein GPT, the world’s first generative AI for CRM, aims to transform how businesses interact with customers by automating content creation across various functions.

Salesforce Ventures is also expanding its Generative AI Fund to $500 million, supporting AI startups and fostering responsible AI development. This expansion includes investments in companies like Anthropic and Cohere.

As Salesforce continues to lead in AI innovation, the focus remains on creating technology that is inclusive, responsible, and sustainable, paving the way for the future of CRM and business.

The Future of Business: AI-Powered Leadership and Decision-Making

Tomorrow’s business landscape will be transformed by specialized, autonomous AI agents that will significantly change how companies are run. Future leaders will depend on these AI agents to support and enhance their teams, with AI chiefs of staff overseeing these agents and harnessing their capabilities. New AI-powered tools will bring businesses closer to their customers and enable faster, more informed decision-making.

This shift is not just a trend—it’s backed by significant evidence. The Slack Workforce Index reveals a sevenfold increase in leaders seeking to integrate AI tools since September 2023. Additionally, Salesforce research shows that nearly 80% of global workers are open to an AI-driven future. While the pace of these changes may vary, it is clear that the future of work will look vastly different from today.

According to the Slack Workforce Index, the number of leaders looking to integrate AI tools into their business has skyrocketed 7x since September 2023.
Mick Costigan, VP, Salesforce Futures

In the [still] early phases of a major technology shift, we tend to over-focus on the application of technology innovations to existing workflows. Such advances are important, but closing the imagination gap about the possible new shapes of work requires us to consider more than just technology. It requires us to think about people, both as the customers who react to new offerings and as the employees who are responsible for delivering them. Some will eagerly adopt new technology. Others will resist and drag their feet.