Generative AI: Enterprise Use Cases

Generative AI, a type of AI that is trained to generate original content, is growing in both its consumer and business use cases. Particularly in the enterprise, generative AI is:

Learn how generative AI is optimizing enterprise use cases across a variety of industries and tasks.

Also read: Generative AI Landscape: Current and Future Trends

And: 100+ Top Artificial Intelligence Companies 2023

Some enterprises, like marketing and sales-driven companies, have quickly added generative AI into their content creation workflows, while others — like real estate, education — have been more hesitant.

Overall, more enterprise companies are looking to today’s top AI companies for assistance – most firms aren’t able to produce or support artificial intelligence without external support.

Still, generative AI’s integration into enterprises is expanding across industries and department types:

For software developers and programmers, generative AI uses cases include writing, completing, and vetting sets of software code. Quality assurance is perhaps the most important emerging use case in this area, with generative AI models handling bug fixes, test generation, and various types of documentation.

Generative AI is now being used to code various kinds of apps and write product documentation for these apps. While apps are probably the most common type of product development for generative AI today, generative AI support is also going into projects like semiconductor chip development and design.

With the right prompts and inputs, large language models are capable of creating appropriate and creative content for blogs, social media accounts, product pages, and business websites.

Many of these models enable users to give instructions on article tone and voice, input past written content from the brand, and add other specifications so content is written in a way that sounds human and relevant to the brand’s audience.

Inbound and outbound marketing frequently require contextualized email and chat threads to be sent to prospective and current customers on a daily basis. Generative AI solutions can create and send the content for these communications, and in some cases, they can also automate the process of moving these people to the next stage of the customer lifecycle in a CRM.

Generative AI is capable of generating realistic images, animation, and audio that can be used for graphic design and video marketing projects. Some generative AI vendors offer voice synthesis and AI avatars so you can create marketing videos without actors, video equipment, or video editing expertise.

As AI-generated imagery, animation, and audio become more and more realistic, this type of technology is being used to create the graphics for movies and video games, the audio for music and podcast generation, and the characters for virtual storytelling and virtual reality experiences.

Some tech experts predict that generative AI will constitute the majority of future film content and script writing, though creatives are understandably pushing back on that assumption.

Generative AI uses cases include several business and employee coaching scenarios. As an example, contact center call documentation and summarization, when combined with sentiment analysis, gives managers the information they need to assess current customer service rep performance and coach employees on ways to improve.

Because generative AI can work through massive amounts of text and data to quickly summarize the main points, it is becoming an important piece of business performance reporting. It’s especially useful for unstructured and qualitative data that usually require more processing before insights can be drawn.

For many of the most straightforward customer service engagements, generative AI chatbots and virtual assistants can handle customer service questions at all hours of the day. Chatbots have been used for customer service for many years, but generative AI advancements are giving them additional resources to give comprehensive and more human answers without the help of a human customer support representative.

Both internal and external search benefit from generative AI technology. For internal employee users, generative AI models can be used to scour, identify, and or summarize enterprise resources when users are searching for certain information about their job.

Similarly, generative AI models can be embedded into company websites and other customer-facing properties, giving them a self-service solution to find answers to their brand questions.

Generative AI technology is being used to make drug discovery and design processes more efficient for new drugs. AI-driven drug discovery is one of the areas of generative AI that is receiving the most funding right now, so expect this particular enterprise use case to grow significantly in the coming months and years.

Generative AI in medicine is still nascent, but that is changing quickly. Image generation and editing tools are increasingly being used to optimize and zoom into medical images, allowing medical professionals to get a better and more realistic look at certain areas of the human body. Some tools even perform medical image analysis and basic diagnostics on their own.

More on this topic: Generative AI in Healthcare

In medicine, manufacturing, and other materials-based industries, generative AI is being used in a process called inverse design. With inverse design, generative AI assesses missing materials in a process and generates new materials that fulfill the required properties for that environment.

Although generative AI poses some crucial security concerns, it can also be used to heighten data and consumer privacy.

For example, generative AI can be used to create synthetic data copies of actual sensitive data, allowing analysts to analyze and derive insights from the copies without compromising data privacy or compliance.

Generative AI is quickly becoming a staple in modern manufacturing, helping workers create more innovative designs and meet other production goals.

In the realm of predictive maintenance, generative models can generate to-do lists and timelines, make workflow and repair suggestions, and simplify the process of assessing complex data from sensors and other parts of the assembly line.

Several components of supply chain management can be enhanced with generative AI. Route optimization, demand forecasting, supplier risk management, and inventory management can all be made smarter and more accurate with generative AI suggestions.

This type of technology can analyze large amounts of transaction or claims data, quickly summarizing and identifying any patterns or anomalies in that data. With these capabilities, generative AI is great for fraud detection and risk management in finance and insurance scenarios.

Learn about other generative AI examples.

Generative AI enterprise use cases comprise a number of creative initiatives. Some are sticking with conventional subscription-based generative AI models, while others are building their own models and versions of these tools into their existing tool stack.

Here are a few examples of how major enterprises are adding generative AI to their processes today:

Accenture, a major consulting firm, is using generative AI to help its clients create smarter business strategies, roadmaps, and operations.

Accenture’s clients span across banking, sales, customer service, legal, and other industries and are using Accenture’s generative AI services for enhanced search, document summarization, and automated communications.

Nvidia recently released its BioNeMo Drug Discovery Cloud Service, which uses large language modeling to advance and speed up drug discovery, protein engineering, and research in genomics, chemistry, biology, and molecular dynamics.

Expedia’s beta ChatGPT-powered travel planner lets users ask questions and get recommendations on travel, lodging, and activities. It also saves suggested hotels and venues through an intelligent shopping feature, so users can recall and easily book recommended lodging.

Shopify now offers Shopify Magic to help retailers generate product descriptions and other product-related content with artificial intelligence.

Stripe, a financial services and SaaS company, is using OpenAI’s GPT-4 to power better documentation, summarization, and query management for developers that use Stripe Docs.

Also read: Generative AI Companies: Top 12 Leaders

Generative AI is an emerging technology and there are still many unknowns. For example, most users aren’t familiar with how the models are trained or what data goes into their training.

Additionally, these models have wide-ranging capabilities that can both help and harm cybersecurity postures. And finally, generative AI models are quickly growing in their skill sets, posing a threatening alternative for many skilled workers’ careers.

So what can enterprises do to make sure they’re using generative AI responsibly and ethically, in compliance with security/privacy regulations? We expect responsible generative AI expectations to rapidly evolve as the technology matures, but here are a few tips to get started with responsible use:

Learn more: Generative AI and Cybersecurity: Advantages and Challenges

Because generative AI capabilities are changing on a near-daily basis, enterprise use cases for this new technology are evolving just as quickly. With this change comes new opportunities for enterprises to enhance their current operations.

Already, enterprises are leveraging generative AI for everything from writing marketing copy to discovering new pharmaceuticals. For enterprise leaders who want to incorporate generative AI into their business, the key is to consider what model works best for your business, what you’re trying to achieve, and how this new business factor will affect your employees and your customers.

Read next: Top 9 Generative AI Applications and Tools

Udemy vs. Coursera: Which Online Course Platform Should You Choose in 2023?

Photo: bobvila.com

Online courses have exploded in popularity in recent years, and for good reason—when compared to in-person classes, online learning is more accessible and affordable, the content is more diverse, and students can learn at their own pace. Whether students are continuing their formal education, acquiring a new skill or hobby in their free time, or brushing up on some technical skills for work, online learning platform options abound. Udemy and Coursera are just two of the most popular options among the best online course platforms out there. Faced with this choice, students may be wondering, “Which platform is the best fit for me?” Prospective students may also have questions, such as “Is Udemy legit,” and “Does a Coursera certificate have value?” Find the answers to these questions and more in this comparison of Udemy versus Coursera.

Udemy is an online learning platform with courses available in subjects ranging from IT to home improvement to the arts and more. The site operates on an open framework, which means that instructors from across the globe can upload their own videos and lessons. The result is a massive database of course material in a wide variety of languages, topics, and skill levels. Students can choose to purchase classes individually or sign up for a monthly subscription plan for access to over 8,000 classes. Check out our Udemy review to learn more.

Coursera partners with universities and companies to provide thousands of college courses to students in an online format. The site offers accredited classes taught by university professors, which means students can earn real college credit. Students may take individual courses or pursue a degree or certificate through one of Coursera’s guided programs. Classes are priced significantly lower than they would be at a college or university, and many courses are also available for free.

Students starting out on Udemy or Coursera will notice that they have thousands of courses to choose from in various subjects. Udemy’s course catalog is organized under 13 umbrella categories: Development, Business, Finance & Accounting, IT & Software, Office Productivity, Personal Development, Design, Marketing, Lifestyle, Photography & Video, Health & Fitness, Music, and Teaching & Academics. Many Udemy classes are geared toward business and tech professionals looking to develop their skills. For example, software tutorials and coding boot camps are some of the top classes advertised on the site’s main landing page. Udemy students can expect to find these types of courses in higher volumes on the site than others. However, exploring some of the other categories, such as Health & Fitness and Lifestyle, reveals that Udemy offers plenty of lessons in the arts, home improvement, cooking, mindfulness, and much more. If a student can think of something that interests them, it’s likely that they can find at least one class on that topic on Udemy. Furthermore, instruction for each topic can typically be found for all skill levels, from those starting from scratch to seasoned professionals.

While there is some overlap in the type of subject matter found on Udemy and Coursera, the type of options Udemy has for hobbyists and casual learners aren’t available on Coursera. Coursera’s library is made up mostly of university classes, with some additional program offerings from large companies such as Google and Microsoft. Broad topics on Coursera include Data Science, Business, Computer Science, Information Technology, Language Learning, Health, Personal Development, Physical Science & Engineering, Social Sciences, Arts & Humanities, and Math & Logic. Because of Coursera’s partnership with colleges and universities, it is primarily geared toward career development, whether it be in the fields of tech, health care, science, academia, or others. While some introductory courses are offered, other classes may require students to take a prerequisite before enrolling.

Verdict: Coursera’s subjects mirror the offerings of a college or university, with classes covering topics in a range of categories from humanities to machine learning. Udemy offers classes over a wider range of subjects, from basic skills to complex topics, and the distribution of classes among these topics is more even than on Coursera. 

Winner: Udemy

A major reason that students choose to pursue online educations instead of attending classes in person is time management. Eliminating the commute to and from a university campus can save hours each week for those who are also juggling jobs and family commitments. But some online course platforms are more flexible than others. While students taking individual classes on Coursera will have relative flexibility, those in degree programs will be required to adhere to a traditional schedule with live lectures held at regular intervals and homework and quizzes with strict deadlines. Other programs include Guided Projects for a more hands-on approach and Specializations for those looking to go in depth on one subject. Students may also need to sign up in advance to be enrolled for the semester rather than having the ability to start a course at their convenience. Students will only have access to the class resources and materials during the class term. Some classes may also not be available every term. This type of course structure can be inconvenient if lecture times overlap with work schedules. On the other hand, students who need external motivation may prefer the extra push that comes with having regularly scheduled lectures and coursework with deadlines.

Udemy courses are much more casual and flexible. Students can start learning as soon as they purchase the course and can take it at their own pace. Most classes are formatted as prerecorded video lectures, which students can pause and come back to at any time, with the option to access them on the go using the Udemy app. If any quizzes are provided, they are typically optional or are multiple choice and not graded by the instructor. Once a class has been purchased, the student retains lifetime access as long as they have their Udemy account. Students are free to revisit the material at any time or retake the class as often as they would like. Not only does Udemy’s more flexible structure make it possible for busy individuals to tailor their education to their needs, but it also makes it possible to work ahead and complete courses more quickly if desired. For some, this lack of structure may not be a pro. Those who prefer having traditional class times can schedule regular “learning reminders” through the site, add them to their calendar, and turn on push notifications to be prompted when it’s time to learn.

Verdict: Coursera classes are typically structured like a university course would be, with scheduled lectures and assignments for each week. Meanwhile, Udemy offers students the benefit of flexible learning: courses are self-paced, meaning students have as long as they want to work through the material and can do so at any rate that suits them.

Winner: Udemy

Studying online is relatively affordable compared with the cost to attend in-person classes or enroll in a university. While the low cost of an online learning platform can be financially viable for a higher volume of students, it’s worth investigating whether this decrease in cost goes hand in hand with a decrease in course quality. When it comes to Udemy and Coursera, prices can vary widely depending on the courses being taken and whether students sign up for subscription plans.

Udemy is an affordable option for most students—even those limited to taking only Udemy’s free courses would find that there is plenty of course material available for them. Other classes are available for individual purchase starting at around $9.99. There are no Udemy fees, and course prices are exactly as listed. Alternatively, students can sign up for a monthly Udemy subscription plan, which provides unlimited access to 8,000 of the courses on the site. Udemy also runs frequent promotions, so if a class is out of a student’s price range it may be worth monitoring the site to see if it goes on sale. Since individual class prices are set by the instructor, it is not always clear if a higher price point is indicative of higher-quality instruction. Students wondering, “Is Udemy good for the price?” can reference the ratings and reviews for a class to get a sense of whether past students felt they got their money’s worth. Udemy pricing is as follows:

At first glance, students may have sticker shock from the prices listed on Coursera. Individual courses can cost as much as $79 per month. Coursera Plus, which provides access to over 7,000 certificate programs, is available either as a monthly or annual subscription plan. Some Coursera reviews indicate that users were not aware that subscriptions auto renew, so students will want to make a note of when their plan ends. Degree program tuition is separate from the subscription options and may be charged per class or per credit hour. Coursera projects may also be priced individually. Students can apply for financial aid through the site if needed. While costs may be high compared to Coursera’s competitors, it’s worth noting that courses are guaranteed to be accredited, and they are taught by experts in their field. Those who are not ready to commit to a course can usually audit it for free, although they won’t receive a certificate and may not be able to access all of the course materials. Coursera cost options are listed below, but there are also thousands of free individual courses offered on the site.

Coursera

Verdict: Coursera offers several levels of access to learning materials. Some lessons, assignments, and discussion forums are available for free (though not all). Students can choose an unlimited membership at $59 per month (with all-access to materials), or they can take individual Coursera courses at a cost between $49 and $79. Comparatively, Udemy’s pricing structure makes access to learning more democratic: class prices start around $9.99, many classes are available for free, and Udemy has frequent sales to make the material even more affordable. 

Winner: Udemy

Since many classes offered on Udemy and Coursera are MOOCs, or “massive open online courses” with thousands of students, student-teacher interaction is practically impossible. Live and prerecorded virtual lectures don’t allow students to chime in with questions or stop the professor to ask for clarification. In many cases, the course instructor’s contact information is not published due to the volume of messages they would be likely to receive from so many students. However, some online course sites do include options for getting in touch with instructors. Coursera courses often include access to an open forum for discussions where the course instructor or fellow students can reply to posts. Some Udemy courses also allow students to message their instructors directly.

Another important point is instructor qualification. Coursera has the advantage of offering accredited courses, meaning that its instructors are affiliated with a university. Students know that when they enroll in a Coursera class, the professor is at least as qualified as any they would encounter on a college campus, with many being well established and recognized in their fields. By contrast, Udemy’s open framework allows anyone to upload a course at any time. This is both an advantage and a disadvantage—for one, it means that course materials are available in thousands of topics and hundreds of languages and allows for the inclusion of information and perspectives from all over the world. On the other hand, it is impossible to vet this volume of content thoroughly. So for those who are wondering, “Is Udemy accredited?” the answer is unfortunately no. Udemy has quality-assurance measures in place, but content quality can still vary significantly. So while some Udemy instructors are just as qualified as the average professor on Coursera if not more so, others may not be credentialed at all. Students can rely on course reviews on Udemy to see if an individual class is worth taking. Both Udemy and Coursera also feature instructor bios with each course for students to refer to.

Verdict: Coursera courses are created and taught by university faculty, which is important for the higher-level material taught on the platform, whereas Udemy instructors don’t require any credentials. However, Coursera doesn’t allow students to reach out to instructors, while Udemy students are able to send messages to their instructors. 

Winner: Tie

When an institution is accredited, this means that its course curriculums have been thoroughly vetted by a third party. Accredited courses must reach a specific level of quality and are regularly re-evaluated to ensure that they continue to meet these standards. Depending on a student’s goals, a lack of accreditation may or may not be a deal breaker when choosing an online course platform. For example, someone who is taking a course to brush up on their public speaking will likely be able to glean valuable insights from an unaccredited program. Similarly, those who are interested in learning a hobby or are simply curious about a new subject can take an unaccredited course. On the other hand, someone studying to become a real estate agent will need to be sure that the instruction they are receiving is current so that they can pass their exams.

If a student choosing between Udemy and Coursera is only interested in accredited courses, they will want to go with Coursera. One reason is quality assurance—because these are legitimate university courses, students can expect the information to be accurate and up to date. Courses being accredited also means that students can receive college credit or certifications that get them closer to their career goals. Finally, job seekers may choose to take Coursera classes from prestigious universities such as Yale or Johns Hopkins in order to make them stand out from other candidates. Only Coursera offers certificates and degrees from big-name schools like these.

Udemy classes are not subject to any kind of accreditation process. Students will also want to keep in mind that Udemy courses undergo very little external review before being published on the site. Students will need to rely on the reputation of the instructor and reviews from past students to vet the class rather than an official third party. Udemy instructors are also not required to update their material. For evergreen topics like mindfulness, gardening, or music, it may not matter if the course has not been updated since being published. But for something like a software tutorial, a course that was published several years ago and has not undergone an update is likely to be outdated. Fortunately, a “last updated” date appears in the course description of every class so students can get an idea of how recent the material is before they purchase it.

Verdict: Neither the Udemy platform nor its courses are accredited, meaning that there is no third-party verification of the quality of the instruction or information. Since Coursera courses are from accredited universities, there is a certain level of quality control to the material being taught—and students can rest assured that they are getting a valuable online education for their money.

Winner: Coursera

Learning for learning’s sake is undoubtedly valuable. Hobbyists and casual students won’t typically need more than a certificate of completion from their course platform to validate their hard work. But if a student is pursuing a degree or certificate, they will need to earn credit for the classes they take. In this case, they will want to verify that they will receive credit or a certificate before signing up.

Students who are in the process of earning a degree or a certificate will want to go with Coursera. Coursera offers options for students who are pursuing a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, or university certificate. Students can enroll in degree programs from a wide variety of universities and receive real college credit upon completion. Certificates can either provide students with the required qualifications to enter a field of employment or increase their chances of being hired due to increased expertise. Alternatively, course certificates are available for students who audit the class, or complete it without officially enrolling. These will not count as credit but signify that a student has taken the course. It’s important for students to understand their educational needs and ensure that the program they choose will get them closer to their goals.

Unfortunately, a Udemy certificate isn’t worth as much. At the end of every Udemy course students will receive a certificate of completion, but even the best Udemy courses cannot be counted toward any official certificates or degrees. They also are not likely to hold much significance to future employers. However, that does not mean that there are no benefits of a Udemy certificate. For one, adding a Udemy certificate to a LinkedIn profile can show initiative and commitment to continuing education. Udemy can also prove valuable in giving students tools and information for advancement. For example, a student may not necessarily include their certificate of completion of an Udemy Adobe Illustrator course on their resume, but they can use what they learned to complete projects to add to their portfolio.

Verdict: Udemy courses provide students with a certificate of completion only. Coursera has more variety in the certificates provided upon course completion, and students can go as far as earning postgraduate degrees through the platform. 

Winner: Coursera

Site usability may not be the first consideration that comes to mind when students begin choosing an online course platform. But unintuitive website design can quickly become a huge frustration, especially for those who anticipate signing up for a subscription and becoming long-term users. Browsing courses, figuring out pricing, and understanding exactly what to expect from the platform are all much more difficult when not supported by the site features.

Udemy’s site is fairly intuitive and browsable. Despite having thousands of courses on hundreds of topics, students can find what they are looking for with relative ease. When it comes time to choose a class, students can explore a list of course categories or type in their chosen topic in the search bar. From there, they can filter results by ratings, duration, topic, subcategory, level, language, price, features, and subtitles. Course prices are clearly listed alongside each class, and students can save classes they are interested in by clicking on the heart next to “add to cart.” Once courses have been purchased, they are easy to locate in the top-right corner of the site under “My Learning.”

Coursera students may have more criteria to consider, including whether a class is needed for their degree, if there are any prerequisites, when the course is being offered, and what kind of credit they will receive. With the many courses, universities, programs, and subscriptions to choose from, navigating the site can feel like information overload. Students can start by choosing the field of study they are interested in or the type of degree or certificate they need. They can also browse all course offerings or type in what they need in the search bar. There are some filter options to sift through these results, but they can be confusing for those who are new to the site or are not sure what they are looking for. Clicking on a category like Business or Arts & Humanities under “Subjects” returns a mix of courses, degree programs, certificates, MasterTracks, and specializations without indicating what each of these means. Over time it may become easier for students to navigate the site as they become more familiar with Coursera’s offerings. However, confusion at the beginning of a student’s journey could mean starting off on the wrong track or not being able to locate the program they need.

Verdict: Udemy has a manageable, intuitive, and clear user interface, whereas Coursera’s has the potential to confuse newer users from the start, with a difficult-to-navigate selection of menus. Udemy also has more search filters and sorting options, which makes finding the right class much easier. 

Winner: Udemy

Both Udemy and Coursera are valuable resources for students who are interested in online education. However, when it comes down to what each platform offers, the sites serve slightly different purposes. Coursera is ideal for those interested in accredited, college-level instruction. Coursera can meaningfully help students advance their careers or pivot to new ones by helping them acquire the appropriate credentials. Casual learners may find that the relatively higher prices on Coursera do not match their commitment level if they are not pursuing a degree. For them, Udemy is an attractive alternative. Students can take any Udemy course on demand without being limited by terms or due dates. Udemy’s massive library of courses means that just about anyone can find a class on the topic they are looking for, probably at a reasonable price (but if not, they can try one of the best Udemy alternatives). Because of these differences, it would be difficult to definitively say whether Udemy or Coursera is the superior platform—the choice depends on what students are hoping to achieve. Either way, Udemy and Coursera both offer thousands of free courses, meaning students can try either platform and decide for themselves with no risk.