Artificial intelligence (AI) innovations are moving at unprecedented speeds, and brands face a critical decision: should they build their own AI solutions from the ground up, or buy ready-made solutions available on the market? There are some amazing AI solutions out there for everything from task management to content creation to insights generation and more. In some realms, it is a clear choice to buy off the shelf. But when it comes to AI for insights, the path may not seem so clear from the outset. Let's explore the pros and cons of both approaches to help you make an informed choice.
The Case for Building Your Own AI Solutions
The pros of building AI solutions in-house
- Native Integration with Existing Systems: Building your own AI solution allows for seamless integration with your proprietary systems. This ensures a more cohesive workflow tailored specifically to your business needs.
- Full Ownership of the Workflow: When you build your own solution, you have complete control over the development process, from the initial design to ongoing modifications. This ownership can lead to greater customization and flexibility.
The cons of building AI solutions in-house
- High Costs: Developing an in-house AI solution is expensive. The costs include not only the physical infrastructure like servers but also the salaries of skilled professionals in software development, machine learning, and AI. These specialists are in high demand and command high salaries. According to a report by McKinsey & Company, the cost of building and maintaining AI solutions in-house can be significantly higher than expected.
- Scarcity of Expertise: The talent required to build sophisticated AI solutions is hard to come by. Finding and retaining a team with the necessary front-end and back-end development skills, as well as expertise in machine learning and AI, can be a significant challenge. A Gartner study highlights the difficulty many companies face in sourcing and retaining AI talent.
- Ongoing Maintenance and Development: Once the AI solution is built, it requires continuous maintenance and updates to keep up with technological advancements and evolving business needs. This adds to the long-term costs and resource allocation.
The Case for Buying AI Solutions
The pros of buying AI 'off-the-shelf'
- Access to Top Innovators: By purchasing a ready-made AI solution, you gain access to the latest innovations from the world's leading AI experts. These vendors are dedicated to advancing their products, often resulting in more sophisticated and cutting-edge tools than an in-house team could develop.
- Cost-Effective Solutions: Market-ready AI solutions can be more cost-effective than building your own. Vendors spread the development costs across many customers, allowing for more affordable pricing structures. A report by Deloitte emphasizes how buying AI solutions can be more cost-effective for many businesses.
- Faster Innovation and Development: Vendors focus solely on their AI products, ensuring continuous improvements and updates. This can lead to faster innovation and more robust solutions that keep pace with industry advancements.
- Flexibility in Choosing the Best Fit: The market offers a variety of AI solutions, allowing you to shop around and find the best fit for your specific business workflows and requirements.
The cons of buying AI 'off-the-shelf'
- Vendor Roadmaps and Investor Influence: When you buy an AI solution, you are subject to the product roadmap set by the vendor and their investors. This means you might have to wait for features that are crucial to your business or adapt to changes that are not aligned with your strategy.
- Integration Challenges: Pre-built AI solutions might not integrate perfectly with your existing systems and workflows. This can lead to additional costs and time spent on customization and integration efforts.
Finding the Right Balance Between AI Solutions and Developing AI In-House
Ultimately, the decision to build or buy AI solutions depends on your brand's specific needs, resources, and strategic goals. For many businesses, purchasing a market-ready solution like Yabble's Virtual Audiences offers a compelling combination of advanced technology, cost efficiency, and rapid innovation. Virtual Audiences leverages cutting-edge synthetic data technology to provide unparalleled insights, helping brands stay ahead in a competitive market.
By carefully weighing the pros and cons of each approach, you can make a decision that aligns with your business objectives and sets you on the path to AI success. While building offers customization and control, it comes with high costs and challenges in finding the right talent. On the other hand, buying provides access to top-tier innovations and cost-effective solutions.
Supercharge Your Insights with Virtual Audiences
Solutions like Yabble's Virtual Audiences can provide the insights your brand needs to thrive, without the hefty investment and complexity of building from scratch. Our latest cutting-edge AI technology solution bypasses the time and cost associated with traditional fieldwork and dives straight into gathering insights in minutes. Powered by Yabble's proprietary Augmented Data model, Virtual Audiences are infinitely knowledgeable. Generating accurate, deep and meaningful insights on almost any topic. No fieldwork, no quota management, no waiting weeks.
Book a demo with the Yabble team today to see how Virtual Audiences could fit into your insights strategy.
