How does MicroStrategy view the role of AI in analytics and business intelligence?
Our vision has always been to empower organisations with actionable insights, enabling them to operate more efficiently, serve customers better, and drive business outcomes. AI amplifies this vision by automating many of the processes involved in turning data into decisions. Tasks like data modelling, dashboard creation, and report generation can now be streamlined, providing users with instant insights rather than waiting weeks for analysis. While this vision isn’t fully realised yet, we’re steadily moving towards a future where AI plays a central role in analytics.
Generative AI (GenAI) is making waves across industries. How is it impacting analytics and BI?
GenAI is transformative because it bridges the gap between technical complexity and human understanding. Unlike traditional AI, which required a strong analytical background to interpret, GenAI leverages natural language processing and cognitive skills to make data accessible to everyone. Users can now ask questions in plain language and receive tailored, actionable insights. Moreover, GenAI can automate workflows, interpret unstructured data, and provide contextually rich answers, elevating the role of business intelligence in decision-making.
What challenges do organisations face when integrating GenAI into analytics?
One significant challenge is GenAI’s probabilistic nature, which can sometimes lead to inconsistent or inaccurate responses—commonly referred to as the “hallucination” problem. On the other hand, business intelligence systems are deterministic, offering reliable, repeatable results. By combining GenAI’s cognitive abilities with the structured rigour of BI, we mitigate these challenges. GenAI handles understanding and framing the question, while BI ensures accuracy in data processing and analysis.
Another concern is data privacy. Many large language models operate in the cloud, and organisations are understandably cautious about sharing sensitive data. At MicroStrategy, we address this by minimising the data sent to LLMs, avoiding training them on customer data, and maintaining strict boundaries to protect privacy and ensure compliance.
There are also organisations in highly regulated industries, such as finance and healthcare, that remain apprehensive about implementing AI solutions due to stricter data usage guidelines. However, our approach—where customer data is kept separate from LLM training—has made our solutions viable for even the most sensitive sectors. This differentiation allows us to work with customers who may hesitate to adopt AI from providers with less stringent data privacy practices.
How does MicroStrategy differentiate its AI innovations from competitors?
Our semantic layer is a standout feature. This data modelling layer simplifies complex databases and presents them to business users in a governed, secure, and scalable way. It ensures that calculations, metrics, and definitions are consistent and specific to each organisation. When AI is applied on top of this layer, it delivers accurate, context-aware insights. Competitors often lack this robust foundation, making it difficult—if not impossible—to deliver reliable AI-driven analytics on structured data.
Looking ahead, what do you see as the next transformative technology in the analytics space?
I believe we’re moving towards a world of “agentic AI” or virtual employees. These AI agents will handle tasks autonomously—creating marketing campaigns, conducting revenue analyses, or even drafting business plans. Just as the Industrial Revolution amplified human productivity through machinery, these AI agents will significantly enhance our capacity to accomplish complex tasks. While this might take five years to fully materialise, it’s a natural progression of AI’s evolution.
How does MicroStrategy see itself fitting into this AI-driven future?
While many AI systems excel with unstructured data—such as generating creative content—they often struggle with structured data critical for tasks like customer segmentation and personalised messaging. This is where MicroStrategy’s strength lies. We envision a future where AI agents rely on MicroStrategy to process structured data effectively. For instance, an agent could use MicroStrategy to identify the most promising customers for a new product and then generate personalised campaigns based on that analysis. By seamlessly integrating structured and unstructured data, we aim to be a cornerstone of this next wave of AI innovation.
AI is no longer just a tool; it’s becoming an indispensable partner in decision-making and productivity. At MicroStrategy, we’re committed to leveraging AI responsibly and innovatively to unlock the full potential of analytics. The future is incredibly exciting, and we’re proud to help shape it.
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