TL;DR:
- Accenture and Google Cloud have partnered to establish a global Generative AI Center of Excellence (CoE).
- The CoE offers industry expertise and technical resources to help businesses harness generative AI for operational improvements and customer experiences.
- Google’s advanced model, Gemini, is a key focus for enterprises looking to enhance AI capabilities.
- Services include model customization, a wide range of large language models, rapid prototyping, and AI infrastructure.
- Duet AI for Developers facilitates code generation, speeding up software development.
- Accenture will expand the internal use of Google Cloud’s technology for software engineers.
- This partnership reflects the growing demand for generative AI across industries.
Main AI News:
In a groundbreaking collaboration, Accenture and Google Cloud have joined forces to usher businesses into a new era of generative AI innovation. Their shared vision is to empower enterprises to elevate their operations, establish novel revenue streams, and craft unparalleled customer interactions. The culmination of this endeavor is the creation of a global Generative AI Center of Excellence (CoE), designed to equip businesses with the indispensable industry acumen, technical proficiency, and product resources necessary to leverage Google Cloud’s generative AI portfolio effectively. This initiative aims to expedite the realization of value-driven outcomes.
This strategic partnership marks another significant stride in Accenture and Google Cloud’s mission to empower organizations with generative AI capabilities, opening the door to uncharted growth prospects. The CoE will serve as a compass for enterprises, helping them discern the most suitable large language model for their unique business objectives. Notably, Google’s cutting-edge model, Gemini, is primed to offer enhanced performance, efficiency, and state-of-the-art capabilities. This transformational technology is set to redefine how large enterprises harness AI for tackling intricate tasks. The Gemini Pro API has already made its debut in public preview, with the forthcoming launch of Gemini Ultra poised to revolutionize the AI landscape.
The CoE will amalgamate Accenture’s unparalleled model customization services and full-stack engineering expertise with Google Cloud’s advanced generative AI technology, endowing clients with the following advantages:
- Specialized access to Accenture’s cadre of data and AI architects and engineers, enabling the development of advanced prompt engineering strategies. This encompasses AI model optimization, fine-tuning, and foundation model customization, thus expediting the realization of business objectives. Additionally, clients will gain access to Accenture’s AI Navigator platform, an invaluable resource replete with curated industry datasets. It will also provide support for Google Cloud’s Model Garden collection, integrating responsible AI controls to uphold ethical and governance standards.
- Access to a wide array of large language models (LLMs), including over 130 models accessible via Model Garden on Vertex AI. Vertex AI equips enterprises with a comprehensive suite of AI and machine learning development tools. These tools facilitate the seamless integration of generative AI capabilities into their operations, with the added convenience of APIs, MLOps tools, and native integration with BigQuery. The CoE will play a pivotal role in driving the adoption of Gemini, Google’s most versatile and adaptive model, to revolutionize business operations through its advanced reasoning capabilities.
- Introduction of new rapid prototyping services on Google Cloud, designed to expedite the development and deployment of generative AI applications. These services will serve as catalysts, igniting innovation across enterprise operations and diverse industries. Use cases encompassing generative AI applications for enterprise search enhancement, customer contact center experience enhancement, automation of unstructured document management, and summarization, among others, will be at the forefront of this transformation.
- Leveraging Duet AI for Developers to facilitate code generation and completion. This empowers software engineering teams with generative AI capabilities, thereby enhancing every facet of the development lifecycle.
- Access to Google Cloud’s state-of-the-art, AI-optimized infrastructure, including Tensor Processing Units (TPUs), Graphics Processing Units (GPUs), and Google AI Hypercomputer. This infrastructure ensures rapid training, tuning, and serving of AI models.
- Adoption of industry-tested AI managed services and best practices, derived from Accenture’s extensive experience with over 300 scaled generative AI projects, an impressive portfolio of AI solutions, and 1,450+ AI patents and patent-pending applications.
The establishment of the Accenture and Google Cloud CoE arrives at a pivotal moment, as organizations across diverse sectors aspire to infuse generative AI capabilities into their enterprise operations. Independence Blue Cross, a prominent health insurance provider, is a testament to the transformative potential of this technology. Through their utilization of AI, they have optimized data management, identified avenues for improving member experiences, and introduced innovative services. Independence Blue Cross eagerly anticipates collaborating with Accenture and Google Cloud’s CoE to explore new frontiers in generative AI, with the aim of proactively enhancing their members’ well-being.
Karthik Narain, Group Chief Executive–Technology at Accenture, affirms, “As a catalyst for business reinvention, generative AI will transform how people work and access information. Organizations want to move from experimentation with generative AI to scaled implementations faster. Accenture’s deep expertise in managing and scaling large language models tailored for business needs, paired with tools like Accenture’s model switchboard, can help accelerate adoption. Our latest joint investment with Google Cloud can help clients drive quicker business results, as well as long-term value from their generative AI applications.”
Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, adds, “Accenture is a leader in providing AI services that help enterprises successfully implement generative AI and accelerate business transformation. Through our joint center of excellence, enterprises across industries have access to leading technical experts and engineers that can address their most complex business challenges and quickly begin creating value from Google Cloud’s advanced generative AI technology.”
Furthermore, Accenture is set to broaden the horizons of its internal operations by extending access to Google Cloud technology. Thousands of its software engineers will gain entry to Duet AI for Developers, a tool that offers sequential and context-sensitive coding suggestions. This strategic move is poised to expedite software development, enabling both novice and seasoned developers to craft code more efficiently.
Conclusion:
The establishment of Accenture and Google Cloud’s Generative AI Center of Excellence signifies a significant move towards mainstream adoption of generative AI in the business world. This partnership equips enterprises with the tools, expertise, and resources needed to harness the power of generative AI, transforming operations and customer experiences. As businesses leverage this technology, we can expect a surge in innovation and competitiveness across various industries, ushering in a new era of AI-driven business excellence.
