So here’s something kind of wild:
According to McKinsey, 78% of businesses are now using AI in at least one area. That’s up from 55% just last year. And it’s not just tech giants. Everyday companies in marketing, sales, IT support, and customer service are using AI to reduce busywork and improve productivity.
The biggest growth has been in IT departments. A few months ago, only 1 in 4 companies were using AI in IT. Now it’s closer to 1 in 3. Marketing teams are also adopting it quickly.
This is no longer a future trend. AI is already part of how many businesses operate. Whether it’s helping write emails, sort support tickets, or eliminate repetitive tasks, AI is proving useful across the board.
But with fast growth comes a need for smarter, safer use.
AI Safety
Do your research. Not all AI tools treat your data the same way.
- Most free AI engines, such as ChatGPT, will use anything you put in to help train the system. That means what you upload could be shared with others in the future.
- Paid versions normally include some level of information privacy, but it’s still important to understand what you’re agreeing to.
- Uploading a customer list to reformat it might seem harmless, but that data could end up in another user’s results if they ask for something like “a list of customers in my town needing services.”
Let Wingman IT Help You With Your AI
We live and breathe technology, and we can help you with AI too. Just let us know what you’re looking for.
One solid option to explore is Microsoft CoPilot for Office 365:
- It’s secure
- It can be enabled only for employees who will use it
- It has access to your Office 365 information, making it much more efficient when finding, summarizing, and analyzing internal documents
- It integrates into Word, Excel, and Outlook to help make you more efficient around every corner
You don’t have to jump into AI today. But knowing where it fits, and how to use it safely, can help your business stay productive and protected.