Did you drive a 30-year-old Opel to work today? Your AI strategy might be doing just that.
Author: Anthony Gyursanszky, CEO, Codento
Do you remember 1995? Finland joined the European Union, recovered from a recession, and most importantly, won the Ice Hockey World Championship. At the same time, the world of technology saw the birth of three reigning categories that still define almost everything we do at work: the WWW, CRM, and ERP.
These innovations created the foundation of the digital world, a rule-based paradigm that we know and experience every day. Its basic building blocks are menus, forms, folders, reports, and search fields. On top of this, we built our processes, our organizations, and our professions.
For the last 30 years, we have effectively been driving this digital Opel, the most popular car of 1995 in Finland. We have installed air conditioning, fitted better tires, and added a reversing camera. But fundamentally, it is still the same car.
AI strategy – a new engine or just better windshield wipers?
We are now living in the age of AI, and every major technology vendor is rushing to bring their own AI assistants to the market. Microsoft, Salesforce, and SAP are all adding artificial intelligence to their existing systems. This is understandable, but restrictive and short-sighted.
These AI assistants are designed primarily for one reason: to make life easier within the confines of a 30-year-old paradigm. They help us fill out old forms faster and generate reports from old data structures more efficiently. They are like better windshield wipers on an old Opel – useful, but they don’t change what you drive or how you travel.
The incumbent vendors understandably have a vested interest. Their entire business model is built to protect this old world, not to create a new one.
Finland’s unique “AI-native” opportunity
What if we went back to 1995 for a moment and, instead of the World Championship title, we received today’s artificial intelligence, cloud, and data capabilities? Would we have built form-based CRM systems? Unlikely.
We would have created proactive agents that converse with salespeople, anticipate customer needs, and handle routines independently. We would have built a business that is not based on navigable applications, but on intelligent, autonomous services.
This is what I call an AI-native approach to AI strategy; it does not seek to fix the old, but to build the future from a clean slate. Herein lies a huge opportunity for Finnish companies. We do not have to carry the heavy legacy of incumbent vendors. We can leapfrog directly to the forefront of development.
What kind of platform enables the future, instead of locking you into the past?
Building an AI-native future requires a foundation designed for it. This is why independent, open, and scalable AI platforms are a strategically compelling choice.
With such a platform, no one is trying to sell you a better version of an old ERP. What if you adopted world-class tools – the best language models, data capabilities, and infrastructure – on top of which you can build your own unique competitive advantage? It gives you the freedom to create, not force you into an old mold.
We are facing a fundamental choice. Do we remain loyal customers of the old Opel Group, continuously buying new accessories and hoping for the best? Or do we decide to build our own factory for self-driving cars, one that will redefine the rules of the entire industry?
Which car is your company building?
Ask more about Codento’s AI Agent Launchpad service, which is specifically designed for leveraging AI-native agent platforms.
About the author:
Anthony Gyursanszky, CEO, joined Codento in late 2019 with more than 30 years of experience in the IT and software industry. Anthony has previously held management positions at F-Secure, SSH, Knowit / Endero, Microsoft Finland, Tellabs, Innofactor and Elisa. Hehas also served on the boards of software companies, including Arc Technology and Creanord. Anthony also works as a senior consultant for Value Mapping Services. His experience covers business management, product management, product development, software business, SaaS business, process management, and software development outsourcing. Anthony is also a certified Cloud Digital Leader.
