How integrating edge with cloud, data and AI unlocks value

I recently spoke with an automotive manufacturer who mentioned that they are looking to invest at the edge as an engine for innovation—in the same way that they’ve done with cloud over the last decade. Edge is where the data is generated and where action is taken. For example, it’s where the self-driving happens in a self-driving car; where voice activation occurs to unlock a parked car; or where AI-powered orchestration acts in an intelligent manufacturing plant.

I couldn’t agree with them more. Companies interested in tapping into the exponential potential of AI, should look at edge as the new frontier for innovation and investment. Even if AI models are developed centrally, the inferencing, and in some cases, the training, remains at the edge. 

Accenture recently surveyed 2,100 C-level executives across 18 industries and 16 countries, and found that most companies believe in the value of edge. 83% think edge computing will be essential for future competitiveness. And 81% believe waiting too long will lock them out of the benefits.

Still, just 65% of companies are actually using edge today. And only about half of them have really integrated edge with the digital core.

So how can companies advance on their edge journeys and secure competitive advantage?

The four approaches to edge adoption

All approaches to edge are not created equal, and they vary widely both within and across industries. Our research identified four different adoption types:

• Ad-Hoc
• Tactical
• Integrated
• Super-Integrated (a subset of Integrated, consisting of just 6% of all edge adopters)

These types can be viewed as relative to their integration of edge within the broader cloud strategy and the digital core, which brings together cloud, data, AI, applications and platforms.

Research found that Integrated and Super Integrated adopters are seeing the most value from edge, due to their ability to systemize and scale their efforts. To illustrate, compared with Ad Hoc firms, Super Integrated companies are 4x more likely to achieve accelerated innovation, 9x more likely to increase efficiency and nearly 7x more likely to reduce costs.

How companies are adopting edge

Looking at examples across each adoption type can help us understand how companies in any industry can move toward greater value.

Ad hoc hits roadblocks

Ad Hoc adopters tend to use edge for one-off deployments, led by centralized IT. They're companies that may have started out by adopting virtual machines, IoT and containers at the edge.

Some companies adopt an Ad Hoc approach because of the way their businesses are set up. For instance, energy companies are basically born at the edge—with critical oil wells or rigs dispersed across out-of-reach locations, which required the adoption of virtual machines and IoT. In fact, almost three-quarters of survey respondents from the energy industries (Oil & Gas, Coal, Renewables and others) indicated that they are working on remote offshore edge-related applications.

However, for most Ad Hoc companies, decisions are made by single lines of business, and they lack the cloud maturity to truly integrate edge at scale. This leads to isolated and lackluster outcomes compared to other adopters.

Tactical gets stuck in a box

Tactical adopters use edge to address a specific need in a shorter time frame. They often buy pre-packaged solutions from independent software vendors (ISVs). 

For example, in retail, we’ve seen companies working with ISVs for loss prevention and smart point-of-sale solutions. One global retailer built an edge capability to enable employees to get information about products from servers in the back office, in case services temporarily went down. They had limited success in scaling edge across different countries with different requirements.

Using pre-packaged solutions can make it easier to get started with edge, because you don’t need the in-house skills or talent. But these adopters will be limited in flexibility and the ability to extend to other use cases.

Integrated commits to difference

Integrated adopters demonstrate a commitment to doing things differently. They’re integrating edge with cloud, data, AI, applications and platforms and other emerging capabilities. They’re more able to standardize across regions, locations and deployment types. As a result, they can scale faster.

In manufacturing, for instance, leading companies are completely changing the way things are done by integrating edge, AI and digital twins to drive better efficiency, quality and safety across their operations. These technologies work in tandem, with a digital twin filling in gaps in the data to power “What-If” analyses in the cloud. That then powers AI inferencing and insights that act as a real-time stimulus at the edge.

This can also apply to other sectors, like Life Sciences, where so much of their business already happens at the edge. Consider drug discovery, for example. Edge, coupled with AI, enables scientists to explore and analyze super detailed images of molecular structures in the lab—without the latency and cost involved when moving data to the cloud. This helps them to identify promising drug targets more intelligently and accelerate overall outcomes.

Considering edge as an extension of the Cloud Continuum can also help improve day-to-day operations while laying the foundation for innovation. For example, by reducing infrastructure costs for virtual machines by up to 50%.

Super Integrated sets the bar higher

Super Integrated companies are moving faster, using edge to differentiate their core businesses. They’re investing in the talent and partners needed to get the most out of edge and are reaping the benefits.

We see a high instance of Super Integrated adopters in the automotive industry, where edge is being used to drive the evolution of smart and autonomous vehicles. Tesla, for example, has created its own chipset to custom-build a supercomputer that trains AI systems within the car, which will rely on data from at-scale training across their fleet.

The Super Integrators are the ones really disrupting their industries: Tesla with its electric and self-driving cars; Amazon with its next-level, automated fulfillment capabilities and their Just Walk Out retail technology. Once Super Integrators work out edge and AI capabilities at scale, it sets the bar higher, leading to further edge innovation within the sector.

Advancing value with edge, cloud, data and AI

Your adoption type today doesn’t have to determine your success tomorrow. For some companies, Ad Hoc and Tactical approaches were the right move for the business, or a useful way to test assumptions.

While our research found representatives of all adoption types in each industry, some industries show further progress than others.

*Note that Super Integrated in a subset of Integrated

**Pre-Adopters are companies who have yet to execute on their edge adoption plans.

Companies with higher percentages of Tactical and Ad Hoc approaches include Aerospace and Defense, Capital Markets and High Tech. For some of these companies, starting with Tactical and Ad Hoc approaches may result in more immediate benefits, and can be done within a line of business. Other industries lean further toward an integrated approach. Chemicals, for instance, leads the fray with an impressive 52% Integrated adopters.

Still, on average, adoption is almost evenly split between integrated and not-integrated approaches, and 35% have yet to act on their edge ambitions. Which means that most companies have room to progress. What’s clear is that, as data becomes the fuel for differentiation and AI adoption rises, an integrated approach to edge will become a requirement.

The good news? We found three key steps that apply to any type of edge adopter to help companies innovate faster and prepare for a future at the edge.

Read the research to find out what those steps are and learn how to lead with edge computing.