Latest news with #VidyaPlainfield
Forbes
22-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Flipping The AI Pricing Model: Putting Humans First
Vidya Plainfield - Growth Officer at TechSpeed Inc. The promise of AI technology is real, but so is the risk… and the price. It may be time to reconsider our approach. The latest advances in AI software promise to bring your business improved speed, efficiency and accuracy. The right technology can enhance your productivity, free your people up to use their talents in more meaningful ways and empower your organization to reach new heights of success. On the other hand, implementing new technology can be risky, expensive and disruptive. Not only that, but if you don't have the right people in place to leverage this technology, all those promises can come up empty. That's why some service vendors are rethinking their approach to pricing. Forward-looking vendors are dispensing with software licensing fees, instead charging clients for access to human-in-the-loop (HITL) support and throwing in access to powerful AI tools for free. But before we explore this new approach, let's consider the current state of AI pricing. The Status Quo: Licensing First, Outcomes Later The standard pricing model used for modern AI traces back to ancient technological times—the mid-1970s, to be precise. That's when companies began to copyright software as intellectual property and charge businesses licensing fees to use their technology. With this traditional pricing model, businesses typically pay for tiered subscription plans to access proprietary software. Subscription plans often included usage limits, maintenance fees and additional charges for customized integrations or enhanced customer support. Interestingly, while our technology has undergone a remarkable transformation over the last 50 years, this pricing model has remained largely unchanged. When it comes to paying for access to advanced AI tools like OCR, document processing, customer service bots, transcription engines and machine learning platforms, we're still living in the '70s. What's Wrong With This Pricing Model Businesses may be paying for licensed ownership of AI technology, but it's rare that these tools come optimized for your needs right out of the box. You'll usually need to address issues of data quality, identify process exceptions, adhere to regulatory constraints and adjust inputs to match your unique operational nuances. This is a heavy lift, one that requires regular human intervention. That intervention may come from your own in-house team, along with a learning curve and some degree of operational disruption, or it could come through additional third-party support. Either way, that layer of human intervention is rarely priced into the initial licensing and implementation of the software itself. As human oversight proves necessary, you can expect the cost of ownership to rise. This can delay your ROI, or worse yet, place it entirely out of reach. Lowering The Cost And Risk Of AI Now, consider a pricing model in which businesses pay for the true source of value—the human beings turning AI tech, tools and output into insight, action and productivity. In this pricing model, businesses pay for the HITL support that makes AI technology function effectively. The AI tools are then simply embedded in those human services. After a one-time setup fee, there are no additional expenses for licensing. If the technology changes or evolves, those human providers evolve with it at no extra cost to the client. In this context, AI software is no longer sold as the primary product. It is merely one of many tools used by the provider to honor your service agreement. Here's how it works: • Setup Fee: Client pays a small fee for onboarding, system setup and workflow design • Free AI Tools: Client gains access to AI tools that are optimized by, maintained by and licensed to the vendor • Human-In-The-Loop Pricing: After setup, pricing is based on the level of human oversight required for ongoing tasks, such as exception handling, quality assurance and validation. Why This AI Pricing Model Is Better Than The Status Quo With this model, you aren't just purchasing technology from a vendor. You're entering into a partnership with a service provider. You aren't dealing with a provider who will simply sell you the tech, then 'take the money and run.' This human-first approach means that your vendor has to stick around to make sure your AI is usable, reliable and tailored to your needs. The biggest hurdle many small- and medium-sized companies face when scaling up is the cost of expensive software licensing. Some of the most advanced and sophisticated AI innovations are only available to the biggest corporations. By removing the software licensing cost from the equation, vendors can level the playing field for smaller businesses and startups. This makes it possible for smaller players to access the leading-edge AI solutions without the costly upfront investment. Once you've invested in in-house AI implementation and software licensing, that money is spent. There's no scaling back on your investment, even if your business or the economy takes a sudden hit. In contrast, paying for human support on a usage basis means you can be nimble about managing your costs. Need more support during peak seasons? Need to reduce capacity during a slow quarter? When you're paying for usage-based human services, you can scale your spending up or down as needed. This elasticity can be a game-changer for businesses seeking that delicate balance between growth and caution. The Growing Role Of BPO Leading business process outsourcing (BPO) vendors are uniquely positioned to pioneer this new pricing model because of the access they provide to the latest technology and because of the experience, knowledge and expertise of the people they deploy to harness this tech. This means that BPO clients gain access to something more than sophisticated tools; they get the value of real human ingenuity. Rather than focusing solely on cost, this "flipped" AI pricing model prompts businesses to consider not just technology and data, but also how to leverage these assets to their advantage. The flipped pricing model operates on a crucial premise: qualified human beings remain the secret ingredient for success. Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
Forbes
17-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
The AI Of Everything: Making Implementation Decisions Amid Uncertainty
Vidya Plainfield - Growth Officer at TechSpeed Inc. We're living in a moment of extreme volatility. Recent shifts in U.S. tariff policies have cast stock markets into disarray, triggered fears of inflation and impacted long-standing global trade alliances. The result is a deeply uncertain economic climate, one in which businesses are increasingly hesitant to invest capital in new growth but simultaneously concerned about falling behind. Against this backdrop, artificial intelligence (AI) continues its mainstream proliferation. Businesses across sectors are finding ways to adopt AI into their operations, workflows and customer interactions. Increasingly, businesses are turning to AI as a way of hedging in a chaotic time. But is AI really the answer to all our problems? The benefits of AI are undeniable. In many applications, this technology can improve our speed, efficiency, accuracy, insight and responsiveness. But beyond the benefits, many companies also feel serious pressure to keep up with the competition. Many business owners sense that they should be 'doing more' with AI in order to avoid 'missing out.' But 'doing more' is not a particularly well-defined objective. As a result, many companies invest in the wrong tech-based solutions. This can be a costly mistake. It's important for leaders to be aware of the risks of leveraging AI solutions without a comprehensive strategy and the importance of taking an integrated approach to adoption. It's tempting to take a reactive approach to this moment of global uncertainty. Many business owners are anxious. But a knee-jerk investment in AI could actually compound your risk. Here are a few mistakes to avoid: Be selective about how you implement AI. The market is saturated with stand-alone AI applications—tools that offer precise solutions to specific business challenges. While these solutions can typically provide short-term benefits, you may ultimately find yourself implementing a patchwork of different technologies. This can lead to fragmentation, data silos, inconsistent user experiences and difficulty scaling your operation. The AI market is booming with ambitious startups making big promises. But many startups have limited real-world experience, particularly when it comes to deploying AI at scale. Partnering with an inexperienced provider could make it harder to get the support, flexibility and customization you need to reap the full benefits of AI. Integrating AI into business processes is about more than big data and machine learning algorithms. It's also about how humans interact with these features. An AI solution is only as strong as the operators who use it, the inputs used to teach it and the steps taken to refine it. Without human engagement, AI systems are vulnerable to misaligned objectives, hidden biases and stagnation. That's why it's important to prioritize finding the right AI solutions and incorporating human-in-the-loop (HITL) support to make these solutions work. A common mistake I see in this time of economic uncertainty is the adoption of an AI-first mentality. For many, the fear of falling behind creates the sense that some form of AI must be implemented somewhere in the business. But this unfocused approach can lead to implementation failure. AI should only be implemented where it can add value, align with existing objectives, resolve real business problems, drive measurable improvements and complement human expertise. I've found the best way to avoid the mistakes highlighted above is to take an integrated approach to AI. What does this mean? An integrated approach minimizes the risk, cost and complexity of AI implementation. With this approach, often the software vendor provides the AI integration. As IT strategy and architecture advisor Eric Roch says, "Embedded AI enables users to access AI-driven features and functionality within their familiar software environment, enhancing productivity, efficiency, and decision-making." I think the key to success is beginning your integration with low hanging fruit. Test vendor-provided AI integrations or enhancements with existing functions and in familiar software environments. For instance, you may integrate AI-powered technology into your email drafting process and evaluate your results before integrating with additional systems. From there, you'll want to think strategically about your workflows and platforms. Where can an investment in automation or advanced data analytics drive growth? Perhaps it's a new way of approaching customer service, bill processing, document management or sales. The bigger and more impactful the endeavor, the more important it is to be holistic about integration. This is where the right partner can help, both through implementation and ongoing management and support. If you are considering a third-party AI provider, look for a few key features: • Comprehensive and scalable solutions that can integrate with your existing technological infrastructure and grow as your needs grow • Deep experience and expertise, as well as a proven track record for evolving alongside rapidly advancing technology • Human-in-the-loop approach, ensuring that AI solutions are used to complement, optimize and enhance human talent rather than replace it • Continuous improvement, including the application of solutions based on clearly defined needs and opportunities, as well as regular assessment, feedback and adjustment • Hybrid support structure, combining the cost-savings opportunities of offshoring with the quality control, oversight and client support of local project leadership The big takeaway? If you're considering AI as an antidote to economic uncertainty, be sure to choose your next steps carefully. AI can unlock opportunity and create competitive advantage. But investing in a narrowly focused solution, partnering with a fly-by-night provider or launching headlong into new technology without fully considering your actual business needs—these mistakes could magnify your risk in an already risky business environment. Approach implementation with discernment. Understand the complexities of AI integration and choose partners who share this understanding. If you recognize the essential role that people play in the process, work with the right people and leverage the kind of technology that grows as you grow, AI could be your key to sustainable success in a challenging time. Forbes Business Council is the foremost growth and networking organization for business owners and leaders. Do I qualify?
