Report: Majority of Companies Consider Artificial Intelligence a Blessing

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is succeeding in the business environment, even though initially it was not viewed favorably by many people. AI will play an increasingly important role in contactless payments, which aim for minimal interactions, and 61% of global companies express excitement about the impact of this technology on their business, reveals the Global Payments report. According to the cited source, the three most anticipated applications for AI by companies are in the areas of customer care (43%), fraud detection (43%), and marketing (40%). Data from a McKinsey study, included in the Global Payments report, shows that this technology could add between $2.6 trillion and $4.4 trillion annually to the value of the global economy: "Artificial intelligence also opens up the opportunity for more efficient fraud detection. Currently, these systems have too few authentic fraud cases from which to learn. Through artificial intelligence, synthetic examples based on real cases can be generated, leading to the improvement of fraud detection systems. In this case, AI is like a coach for an athlete who needs to prepare for rare but critical situations during the game. Artificial intelligence will play an increasingly important role in contactless payments, which tend toward fewer interactions. Amazon's "pay-by-palm' technology allows customers to pay by scanning their palms on a POS in some of the company's stores. Through biometric authentication, generative artificial intelligence, and machine learning, palm payments can expedite the checkout process for buyers. The technology authenticates the customer's identity and processes the payment, representing another step towards transforming the payment experience into something "invisible' for customers."

According to the specialized report, 44% of companies stated that integrated payments, where customers can make purchases without leaving the online platform, social media channel, or preferred app, will be extremely important for them in 2024. Regarding security and fraud prevention, 62% of respondents believe that reducing the level of fraud in payments is an urgent concern, more than any other issue. According to experts: "In the next decade, fraud is estimated to cost the card industry over $400 billion. And every dollar lost due to fraudulent transactions costs companies $3.75 due to refunds, disputes, and other indirect costs. Another dimension of security is data privacy. In 2021, there were over 4,100 cyberattacks globally, equivalent to approximately 22 billion exposed records. Among credit card users, 44% reported at least two fraudulent transactions in 2022." In the "Live Shopping" segment, over a quarter of respondents (26%) use this concept, 17% claim to have introduced live shopping sessions in the last 12 months, and 23% plan to do so in 2024. Official statistics show that, in 2022, approximately $500 billion worth of products were sold through live streaming, eight times more than in 2019. Additionally, 36% of companies have introduced cashierless checkout in the last year, 44% currently use the service, while 21% are considering its use this year. Moreover, the "tap-to-pay' payment method will be the most important for hotel networks in 2024, and 65% of hospitality/accommodation businesses emphasize that they have plans to optimize this system.

The Global Payments report was conducted based on detailed interviews with 541 respondents from North America, Europe, and Asia, including professionals in e-commerce development, experts from top financial institutions, and representatives of enterprises of various sizes, including companies such as Amazon Web Services, American Express, Discover Global Network, Goldman Sachs, Mastercard, Visa, and Tripleseat.