The benefits and risks of artificial intelligence for small businesses

Artificial intelligence (AI), defined as “a branch of computer science dealing with the simulation of intelligent behaviour in computers”, is not new.

Alan Turing proposed the Turing test as a measure of machine intelligence in 1950 and the first AI program was written for a draughts game at the University of Manchester in 1951. Since then businesses around the world have adopted AI tools.

But despite AI having a long history, it was in November 2022 when the technology exploded into mass public consciousness following the launch of ChatGPT. The service from OpenAI has made global headlines due to its ability to provide detailed answers to thousands of prompts in seconds.

As well as ChatGPT, there are many other AI tools businesses can use to perform tasks such as creating marketing assets, communicating with customers, writing search engine optimisation copy, analysing data and transcribing meetings.

For specific AI tools, here are some lists:

• customer communication chatbots
• content generators
• audio transcription apps
• recruitment services

So how can AI benefit businesses and what are the potential risks?

Business benefits of AI

Use of AI has benefits to businesses including:

Improved productivity and efficiency

Enhanced productivity and efficiency is a key benefit of AI. By automating routine tasks, business owners and their employees can focus on more strategic activities that the technology isn’t able to do. This can lead to increased efficiencies, cost savings and a more productive workforce. 

Apps such as Dext uses automation to scan and categorise receipts, while software including Fathom can help with cash flow forecasting and monitoring businesses’ key performance indicators as part of a wider business insights service.

Boosted customer satisfaction

To stand out from the competition, your business needs to provide a high quality customer experience.

Modern customers expect their queries to be answered quickly and they are looking for products or services that meet their exact needs.

AI chatbots can be used to provide 24/7 customer support with automated answers to common questions. This means human employees can deal with more complicated issues.

The tools can also be used to analyse behaviour data to match customers with personalised offers.

All this can help to improve customer satisfaction levels and boost loyalty for your brand.

Enhanced data insights

As mentioned above, AI can be used to provide customer personalisation, but the data analysis benefits can go further than that and help business owners to make more informed decisions.

By using the tools to track behaviour, you can be alerted to issues such as the user experience on your website, unusual customer complaints or employee behaviour. With this knowledge, you can then make fixes and improvements to increase sales and improve staff engagement.

AI data can also be used to highlight potential new markets for which you can then create targeted marketing campaigns, while there are tools that can highlight technical bugs or cyber security risks. 

Business risks of AI

The potential risks of AI tools for business include:

Mistakes and inaccuracies

AI is not perfect and it can lead to businesses making mistakes and using inaccurate information. This could damage your business from a reputation and financial point of view.

Foe example, studies have shown that developers who use AI systems to generate computer code are more likely to produce code with bugs and security vulnerabilities.

Also, the data used by the original versions of ChatGPT cut off at September 2021. Jeremy Hunt found that out when he asked the tool if he was a good chancellor and it replied saying ‘Rishi Sunak is the chancellor’.

On 24th May 2023 it was announced that ChatGPT will be upgraded to give real time knowledge, although it still relies on information from the internet which could be inaccurate so human checks are still needed. 

Ethical concerns

Similar to the concerns around inaccurate information, there are also potential ethical issues. Considerations include the fact that AI tools can be biased as well as privacy issues due to how personal data is stored. 

A guide by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) says this about AI chatbots:

“There is potential for bias because they collect data only from those people they interact with; they are not sensitive to issues around diversity because the way algorithms work, further marginalises minority voices; or they can be supplied with, or generate, incorrect information and have no powers of discernment to identify this.”

Cyber security

Although there are AI tools that aim to help protect businesses from cyber attacks, online criminals are always looking for ways to hack into systems. This means the fact that you’re using AI tools could leave your business open to malicious behaviour.

AI is developing fast so businesses need to ensure they don’t risk their cyber security due to their keenness to adopt the latest tools.

The National Cyber Security Centre has advice on the security of ChatGPT and large language models (LLMs) here, and tips on assessing AI tools for cyber security here.

Costs and skills

Knowledge can be a barrier to businesses fully benefiting from AI due to the need for skilled professionals with an understanding of machine learning and other associated factors.

Cost can also be a problem due to the need to outsource by businesses that lack in-house expertise, and the cost of implementing the tools themselves which can sometimes be expensive. 

Support for businesses from TaxAssist Accountants

TaxAssist Accountants can help you with the right advice to support your business. While our expertise covers tax, accounting, bookkeeping and payroll, we can also connect you with other providers we work with.

Contact us to find out more about our services and to book a free video or face-to-face consultation.

Date published 26 May 2023 | Last updated 20 Mar 2024

This article is intended to inform rather than advise and is based on legislation and practice at the time. Taxpayer’s circumstances do vary and if you feel that the information provided is beneficial it is important that you contact us before implementation. If you take, or do not take action as a result of reading this article, before receiving our written endorsement, we will accept no responsibility for any financial loss incurred.

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