IDC Predicts Half of Asia/Pacific* Medium-Sized Businesses to Adopt GenAI Apps For Enhanced Marketing and Sales Automation by 2026

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For more information, contact:

• Supriya Deka  Email: sdeka@idc.com
• Miguel Carreon  Email: mcarreon@idc.com
• Michael De La Cruz  Email: mdelacruz@idc.com

IDC Reveals Small and Medium-sized Businesses Predictions for Asia/Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ)

SINGAPORE, 29 January 2024 – In a recent report titled, IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Small and Medium-Sized Business 2024 Predictions — Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Implications, IDC predicts that by 2026, half of medium-sized businesses in Asia/Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) will be using Generative AI (GenAI) based applications to automate and optimize marketing and sales processes.

According to IDC’s 2023 Future Enterprise Resiliency and Spending Survey Wave 6, 47% of the midmarket segment in APEJ is either exploring potential use cases or investing in GenAI technologies. Also, 43% of companies in the midmarket segment anticipate that the technology will have the most impact in marketing applications.

Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (SMBs) and midmarket segments in APEJ have taken notice of GenAI’s potential to revolutionize various industries. However, companies are still exploring how to capitalize on the benefits of this technology. Companies are relying on their technology providers/suppliers with GenAI embedded into their offerings to access ongoing support and updates without investing heavily in internal resources.

IDC’s predictions highlight that cloud providers will be the most strategic GenAI technology partner for over 40% of midmarket companies in APEJ during the next 12 months. Also, about 48% of midmarket companies with employee sizes between 500 and 999 employees in the region are significantly investing in GenAI with an established spending plan for training, acquiring Gen-AI enhanced software, and consulting services in the next 12 months, according to IDC’s 2023 Future Enterprise Resiliency and Spending Survey, Wave 7. Below are AI-driven predictions for the region:

- Vendors for GenAI: By 2028, 50% of SMBs will use services from vendors that leverage GenAI in an effort to capitalize on the benefits of the technology more easily.

- SMBs Monitoring GenAI ROI: During 2024, 70% of SMBs in APEJ will require case studies, clear ROI evidence, and assurance of spending guardrails to unlock their investment in GenAI technologies for generic productivity use cases.

In the near-term (2024-2026), SMBs that are digital natives, will be more open to invest in AI technologies because of their better understanding of the potential benefits of the technology.

The other trends that SMBs and midmarket companies must pay attention to are:

- Tech for Energy Efficiency: To meet their goals for energy efficiency and sustainability, 40% of medium-sized businesses will consider investing in sustainability technology solutions by 2026.

- Data Application/DevOps Growth: By 2026, 30% of SMBs will use data analytics to evaluate investments in cloud and to more closely monitor DevOps spending.

- Ransomware Attacks Crippling SMBs: By 2025, cyberattacks targeting SMBs will become much more prevalent, leading to at least 35% of these companies taking proactive measures to mitigate risks and work on addressing major skills gaps.

- Recession-Resilient SMB: To become more agile and resilient, investments in public cloud technologies at APEJ SMBs will increase by 18% in 2024, with SaaS applications expected to take the lion’s share.

- SMBs Amplifying Analytics Investments: 40% of medium-sized businesses will increase their investments in analytics by 2027 as they seek to make sense of the consumer data they collect and use it to improve business outcomes.

- Connectivity Driving SMB Creation: By 2026, 20% of new small businesses created in APEJ will rely on 5G and fixed wireless access for critical business connectivity.

- Tech Spending Propensity Indicators: 20% of SMBs in APEJ will account for more than 50% of SMB technology spend by 2025 as technology intensity, spending capacity, and digital business models become leading indicators of SMB spending propensity.

"SMBs and midmarket segments will be accelerating their digitalization journey by embracing innovation and sustainability. These businesses are turning to transformative technologies like GenAI, cloud, 5G, and analytics. Further, GenAI will revolutionize the way businesses operate by automating complex tasks and generating creative solutions in areas such as marketing, sales, and customer experience," Says Supriya Deka, Senior Market Analyst, SMB, Midmarket, and Digital-Native Business Program, IDC Asia/Pacific.

Each year, IDC releases its top technology predictions at worldwide, regional and country levels through its IDC FutureScape Reports   and gives a crystal ball view of what is ahead for the rapidly changing IT industry. These predictions have been used to shape the strategies and business objectives of technology leaders and business executives in the next 1-5 years. All the predictions stated here cover Asia/Pacific implications.

Catch an on-demand replay of IDC's 2024 Predictions presentation that will be available as part of a series of FutureScape webinars addressing the IT Industry, AI and Automation, Digital Business, CIO Agenda, and Emerging Technologies. If you would like to attend any of these webinars, register  and learn more HERE.

Asia/Pacific Japan FutureScape Reports come with a complimentary report that provides specific recommendations for tech vendor sales and marketing leaders. Leverage on IDC insights to better understand clients’ priorities and enhance your storytelling and go to market plans, access the IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Small and Medium-Sized Business 2024 Predictions — Asia/Pacific (Excluding Japan) Implications: Positioning for Success — Opportunities for Tech Sales and Marketing Leaders market presentation HERE.

For more information about IDC FutureScape and other resources, please visit our regional FutureScape site. For sales inquiries on the IDC FutureScape framework and reports, please contact your IDC account manager or Tessa Rago at trago@idc.com. For media queries, please contact Michael de la Cruz at mdelacruz@idc.com      or Miguel Carreon mcarreon@idc.com.

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About IDC FutureScape

IDC FutureScape reports are used to shape IT strategy and planning for the enterprise by providing a basic framework for evaluating IT initiatives in terms of their value to business strategy now and in the foreseeable future. IDC's FutureScape reports are comprised of a set of decision imperatives designed to identify a range of pending issues that CIOs and senior technology professionals will confront within a typical five-year business planning cycle.

About IDC

International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. With more than 1,300 analysts worldwide, IDC offers global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 110 countries. IDC's analysis and insight helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community to make fact-based technology decisions and to achieve their key business objectives. Founded in 1964, IDC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of International Data Group (IDG), the world's leading tech media, data and marketing services company. To learn more about IDC, please visit www.idc.com. Follow IDC on Twitter at @IDCAP and LinkedIn. Subscribe to the IDC Blog for industry news and insights.

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