Tag: DeepSeek

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This Week in Enterprise Tech – Week 55

In this podcast episode of This Week in Enterprise Technology, Hyoun Park and Charles Araujo critically assess the biggest tech news for the CIO office:

  1. NVIDIA Strikes an Agentic Pose with Llama Nemotron
  2. NVIDIA Launches a Laser Show with Photonics Switches
  3. NVIDIA, Google, Disney Take on Reality with Physical AI
  4. NVIDIA Open Sourcing cuOPT
  5. Adobe Summit (How Adobe Can Regain its AI Mojo)
  6. Stop It; Operational Efficiency Is Not Innovation
  7. Research Says Teamwork and AI Make the Dream Work Even Better
  8. We Needed an Executive Order on IT Procurement?
  9. SAP Predicts Data Entry Will Disappear By 2027

Buzzsprout Podcast: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2319034/episodes/16855327

For this video presentation of This Week in Enterprise Technology, Hyoun Park and Charles Araujo critically assess the biggest tech issues for the CIO office:

  1. NVIDIA Strikes an Agentic Pose with Llama Nemotron
  2. NVIDIA Launches a Laser Show with Photonics Switches
  3. NVIDIA, Google, and Disney Take on Reality with Physical AI
  4. NVIDIA Open Sourcing CuOPT
  5. Adobe Summit and How Adobe Can Regain its AI Mojo
  6. Stop it. Operational Efficiency is Not Innovation. 
  7. Research Says Teamwork and AI Make the Dream Work Even Better
  8. We Needed an Executive Order on IT Procurement?
  9. SAP Predicts Data Entry Will Disappear By 2027

NVIDIA Strikes an Agentic Pose with Llama Nemotron

NVIDIA launched the Llama Nemotron models to support agentic AI. Some of the biggest names in tech like Microsoft, SAP, ServiceNow, Accenture, and Deloitte have already committed to using models either to support or augment their current AI efforts. 

We wonder if every tech vendor will end up with their own tweaked versions of Llama that end up fragmenting the market 100 different ways? 

NVIDIA Press Release: https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-launches-family-of-open-reasoning-ai-models-for-developers-and-enterprises-to-build-agentic-ai-platforms

CIO Dive’s Lindsey Wilkinson: https://www.ciodive.com/news/Nvidia-gtc-llama-nemotron-model-family-ai-agent-development/742994/?utm_source=AmalgamInsights 

NVIDIA Launches a Laser Show with Photonics Switches

NVIDIA launches silicon photonics networking switches as part of the NVIDIA Spectrum-X Photonics Ethernet and NVIDIA Quantum-X Photonics InfiniBand platforms. If you had told us a few years ago, that Nvidia would bring out the fastest networking equipment for the enterprise, we would have wondered what you were smoking. Charles explains the business logic while Hyoun wonders how long networking providers will continue to be asleep at the wheel. 

NVIDIA: https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-spectrum-x-co-packaged-optics-networking-switches-ai-factories

Optics.org: https://optics.org/news/16/3/26

NVIDIA, Google, and Disney Take on Reality with Physical AI

NVIDIA is also working on physical AI with Google on both AI Robotics and in creating an open-source physics engine. The latter effort also includes Disney Research, well known for translating cutting-edge research into customer experiences. Will this reality-simulating exercise make its way into cars or mass transit?


NVIDIA: https://nvidianews.nvidia.com/news/nvidia-alphabet-and-google-collaborate-on-the-future-of-agentic-and-physical-ai

NVIDIA Open Sourcing CuOPT

NVIDIA opens the floodgates for a well-known analytic use case by open sourcing its cuOPT massively parallelized decision optimization engine. As market leaders including FICO and IBM have already committed to this engine, the strategy seems clear  to drive demand for GPUs. Hyoun and Charles discuss how this execution demonstrates NVIDIA’s focus in use cases in a market that often  struggles to get past nonsensical naming structures. 

NVIDIA: https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/cuopt-open-source/

Adobe Summit and How Adobe Can Regain its AI Mojo

We think Adobe has been a vanguard of AI adoption and innovation, but the tech market at large doesn’t appreciate this role. At Adobe Summit, the tech behemoth made its case for Adobe Experience Platform to be the foundation of a new wave of AI agents for marketers and creatives. Charles and Hyoun debate what else Adobe needs to do to make a case for increased Adobe adoption. 

Adobe on Agents: https://news.adobe.com/news/2025/03/adobe-brings-ai-agents-to-adobe-experience-cloud

Adobe on Gen AI: https://news.adobe.com/news/2025/03/adobe-firefly-services-custom-models-unlock-on-brand-content-production

CIO.com coverage: https://www.cio.com/article/3847382/adobe-makes-agentic-ai-push-with-agent-orchestrator-purpose-built-agents.html 

Stop it. Operational Efficiency is Not Innovation

Strategy consultant Michael Bertha argues that by addressing the “missing middle,” companies can bridge the gap between ideas and execution to innovate. Charles and Hyoun discuss how efficiency and innovation approaches can be quantified and framed. 

CIO.com, Michael Bertha : https://www.cio.com/article/3847331/operational-efficiency-is-not-transformation.html

Research Says Teamwork and AI Make the Dream Work Even Better

Professor Ethan Mollick and a bevy of colleagues from Harvard and P&G came out with a fascinating report showing how AI productivity helps both individuals and groups. Hyoun and Charles dig into this study of P&G revenue and research professionals. Don’t miss Charles’ four-part framework for AI innovation starting with why expert augmentation is a core starting point. 

One Useful Thing – Ethan Mollick: https://www.oneusefulthing.org/p/the-cybernetic-teammate

We Needed an Executive Order on IT Procurement?

It is rare that IT procurement reaches the level of either a CEO or president’s executive memos and public statements. But in 2025, IT procurement has finally reached that stage with a new executive order designed to provide directive action for federal government operations. Hyoun and Charles discuss where this EO makes sense and where it might not pass standard enterprise logic. 

White House Executive Order: https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/03/eliminating-waste-and-saving-taxpayer-dollars-by-consolidating-procurement/

The Register’s Brandon Vigliarolo: https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/21/trump_orders_it_contracts_consolidated

SAP Predicts Data Entry Will Disappear By 2027

SAP CEO Christian Klein predicts manual data entry will disappear from SAP by 2027 as SAP continues its focus on trying to look easier and simpler to use. Both Hyoun and Charles have their separate concerns with this messaging as Charles wonders how practical it is and Hyoun wonders if it fits into SAP customer desires. 

CIO’s Ji-Hyun Lee: https://www.cio.com/article/3850705/sap-ceo-christian-klein-ai-transformation-in-korean-enterprises-will-be-driven-by-business-data-cloud-and-jules.html

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TWIET 48 – Feb. 5, 2025

This Week in Enterprise Technology, Episode 48, Hyoun Park and Charles Araujo critically assess the biggest tech news for the CIO Office:

  1. Earnings: IBM, SAP, ServiceNow
  2. ServiceNow’s AI Orchestrator Automates Complex Workflows
  3. IT Service Automator Atomicwork Secures $25M
  4. EU AI Act In Effect: Now What?
  5. Musk’s Government Actions Stoke CIO Concerns
  6. DeepSeek’s Disruption: Lower AI Costs, More Efficient Models
  7. New US CIO Barbachi’s Background Brings Up Big Questions

Earnings: IBM, SAP, ServiceNow

Hyoun and Charles examined last week’s earnings announcements from IBM, SAP, and ServiceNow. IBM is embracing AI and cloud consulting under CEO Arvind Krishna, while SAP is shifting towards cloud adoption despite its legacy challenges. ServiceNow impressed with growth and CRM expansion, despite stock market reactions.

CNBC on IBM: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/01/30/ibm-rallies-heads-for-best-day-ever-on-strong-earnings.html

SAP: https://news.sap.com/2025/01/sap-announces-q4-and-fy-2024-results/ 

ServiceNow: https://www.servicenow.com/company/media/press-room/fourth-quarter-full-year-2024-financial-results.html 

ServiceNow’s AI Orchestrator Automates Complex Workflows

ServiceNow is making bold moves into CRM and agentic AI, positioning itself directly against Salesforce. Despite strong announcements, Charles feels ServiceNow’s pitch seems forced, signaling their desire to catch up. The challenge lies in entering an established CRM space while aiming to improve sales-service automation through AI.

VentureBeat: https://venturebeat.com/ai/agentic-ai-needs-orchestration-how-servicenows-ai-orchestrator-automates-complex-enterprise-workflows/ 

IT Service Automator Atomicwork Secures $25M

Atomicwork raises $25 million in Series A funding, surprising many due to their strong market presence despite limited initial capital. Focusing on IT service automation, they join other companies like Symphony in revolutionizing processes. Charles and Hyoun highlight the advancements in employee support technology.


Atomicwork: https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2025/01/28/3016541/0/en/Atomicwork-Secures-25M-in-Series-A-Funding-to-Transform-Enterprise-IT-with-Agentic-AI.html

EU AI Act In Effect: Now What?

The EU AI Act came into effect February 2, imposing strict regulations on AI systems, especially those interacting with European customers. CIOs must be mindful of potential risks and ensure compliance, as penalties could reach up to 7% of revenue. With guardrails in place to protect data, there’s also the risk of overprotection that could hinder legitimate business. The evolving regulatory landscape demands careful attention from tech leaders, say Charles and Hyoun.

Official EU AI Act Website: https://artificialintelligenceact.eu/high-level-summary/ 

Littler: https://www.littler.com/publication-press/publication/first-requirements-eu-ai-act-come-force-february-2025

NCC Group: https://www.nccgroup.com/us/the-eu-ai-act-pioneering-the-future-of-ai-regulation/?utm_source=perplexity

Musk’s Government Actions Stoke CIO Concerns

Elon Musk’s self-insertion into the U.S. government’s treasury and Social Security data has raised alarms, particularly regarding security clearances and potential compliance risks. Hyoun and Charles agree that CIOs must consider the resulting uncertainty and volatility, as well as the need for a more deliberate strategy in handling government data.

Fortune: https://fortune.com/2025/02/02/musk-doge-treasury-payments-system-halt-us-govenment-contractors-lutheran-charity/

Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/02/01/elon-musk-treasury-payments-system/

MSNBC: https://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/rcna190222

DeepSeek’s Disruption: Lower AI Costs, More Efficient Models

While the costs of model development and inference are expected to continue dropping, the big takeaway for CIOs from DeepSeek is the increasing feasibility of AI integration into systems without relying on massive compute power. Charles and Hyoun discuss how AI development can become more efficient, with advancements in model distillation and using lower-level languages like PTX. The shift toward model independence creates opportunities for more tailored solutions.

Ben Thompson’s DeepSeek FAQ at Stratechery: https://stratechery.com/2025/deepseek-faq/ 

Dario Amodei on DeepSeek: https://darioamodei.com/on-deepseek-and-export-controls 

VentureBeat: https://venturebeat.com/ai/deepseek-r1s-bold-bet-on-reinforcement-learning-how-it-outpaced-openai-at-3-of-the-cost/

Prateek Kathpal on DeepSeek: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/deepseeks-bold-ai-move-ditching-cuda-ptx-high-stakes-play-kathpal-b1yyc/ 

New US CIO Barbachi’s Background Brings Up Big Questions

The United States has a new CIO. And his background seems pretty solid from a security perspective, but he doesn’t seem to have much experience actually managing IT departments. Will that matter? Hyoun and Charles discuss the expectations for Greg Barbachi.

The Register: https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/28/the_us_governments_new_cio/