AI will transform workflow and enterprise at workplaces over the coming years, as there are huge customer benefits embedded in AI systems, particularly via single entry AI interfaces to all solutions, senior leaders of SAP said.
Thomas Pfiester, Head of Global Customer Engagement & Services, SAP, told The Hindu, on the sidelines of the SAP Connect conference in Las Vegas earlier this month: “What we need to look at is in terms of customer benefits where AI-driven suites become the competitive differentiators that increase efficiency and productivity.”
He added that globally, SAP’s customers have shown a sense of urgency to embark on new technology, and have realised the need for transformation In India, for example, he explained, the Tatas and Reliance group are changing business models, either due to internal or external factors such consumer demand, sustainability, or cost pressures, and they need IT systems that support this transformation.
Since it is based on natural language the benefit is that it breaks down the barriers between end users and numerous applications with a single entry point. Mohammed Alam, member of the Executive Board of SAP SE, explained it with an analogy during one of the keynote sessions during SAP Connect: “Look at the modern phone; what were disparate things [camera, torch, gps, step calculator] are now all connected seamlessly into one experience, creating unmatched value. The world of business applications is no different.” There will indeed be a learning curve for any organisation, but the goal is to make the curve as small as possible.
In future, Ted Way, VP and Chief Product Officer, SAP Business AI Product Engineering, added: “I think there’s definitely an opportunity to be able to ground the AI in the specifics of, say, your history, of your preferences, for example, and customise it in that sense.”
Mr. Way said, at SAP, using AI has been more of a continuum, and is a constant back and forth between customers and the tech team. “As the central business AI unit my team listens to our stakeholders, our lines of business, and internal stakeholders, who then listen to their customers, and transmit the requirements back to us… We’re going to work with our customers to continue to help bring end users along so that they can get the best out of the AI that we have.”
As far as data security goes, Mr. Pfiester says SAP ensures that all required global standards are being followed. Mr. Way chimed in: “There is a minimum requirement for data privacy, then some businesses might have more custom safety models built in. We have entire teams dedicated to compliance and privacy and safety, and that plus AI ethics, and responsible AI. It’s not like sprinkles on a cake, it’s a core ingredient to everything that we build.”
Mr. Pfiester pointed out that the way data is being accessed has changed, essentially reducing classic security issues. “While earlier, we used to see data taken out, and copied, which caused security issues, things have changed. We are partnering with Databricks and Google Query – to can access the suites in a non-SAP environment without copying the data, thereby mitigating security issues.”
Addressing concerns about ‘handing over things to AI’, Mr. Pfiester explained: “It’s a fair concern, and we all have it. AI augments, replaces tasks formerly done by humans, but it will not be fully, autonomously, running operations. We follow all AI standards and are engaged with it needs to be measured and controlled.”
Mr. Way said that the human definitely needs to stay in the centre of everything. “Some of the more mundane tasks may be automated. For example, it is the human who knows that this function needs to be written to do a task. AI can write that, but the human needs to know that this function needs to be done in the first place. The human needs to interface with the end user to understand the problems and then to translate those problems into a technical problem to be solved. And then the human also needs to be there to identify and to architect what that solution will look like and how that fits into all the other solutions.” (The writer was in Las Vegas at the invitation of SAP)
Published – October 24, 2025 07:38 pm IST
