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Do you remember the times when AI was viewed as futuristic? It has since became a buzzword, and now it’s our reality.
Over time, AI has become an integral part of our day-to-day lives. In 2020, we saw the first inklings of capable LLMs. In 2021, we witnessed the implementation seeds of AI applications in various industries. In 2022, AI started to go mainstream, and the LLM hype exploded. In 2023, generative AI became the next big thing and no one could stop talking about it. In 2024, we saw more companies coming out providing infrastructure for AI companies to scale.
Now we’re in 2025, and we’ve certainly witnessed drastic changes to AI over the past 5 years. But one critical question remains: what is the return on investment (ROI) of AI in the year 2025? Let’s have a look.
ROI in AI
First we need to define ROI in terms of AI. ROI has typically been measured through various metrics such as revenue growth, cost-savings, and efficiency. However, with the complexities of AI, it requires more robust and nuanced approaches to evaluate its value. Considerations include, for example:
- time to value
- intangible benefits
- scalability
Similar to how AI transformed vigorously over the past 5 years, the ROI of AI needs to be viewed through a telescope to see the long-term vision and benefits.
How to Measure AI ROI
In order to measure the impact of AI and its ROI, you will need to use two types of metrics: qualitative and quantitive.
Quantitative ROI metrics include:
- Improvements in operational processes: For example, the time to deploy applications or reduction in processing times.
- Accurate decision making: How are data-intensive organisations using the data to enhance their decision-making process?
- Cost savings: Every organisation, man, woman, cat or dog wants to know how they can save money. Is AI being used to decrease human error or increase customer satisfaction to reduce costs?
Qualitative ROI metrics include:
- Customer satisfaction: Are organisations seeing an increase in sales or customer success due to the use of AI?
- Employee/Company satisfaction: Are organisations growing healthily as employees enjoy their break from repetitive tasks which AI can do for them now?
Using these metrics around the use of AI can help organisations understand the true ROI of their AI investment.
Address The Challenges
Before we can start jotting down the numbers and making our calculations, we need to address the challenges of AI. AI is not the most cost-effective investment; however, if all goes well, you could be laughing! Here are some of the challenges:
- Expensive as hell: The initial costs for implementing AI solutions can be a hefty one. The upfront costs for talent and technology can be a massive deterrent to many people.
- Employment: Although many people are speaking about AI and trying to get into the industry, it doesn’t mean there’s a massive pool of great talent. Finding the right professionals with the right skills is still a major challenge.
- Ethics and morals: There have been a lot of concerns around the use of AI over the past few years with new regulations coming out to protect the socioeconomics around it. Lack of transparency and bias are still lurking around AI.
What Is The Real ROI in AI for 2025?
Over the coming months, various industries, from healthcare to finance, will continue to leverage AI’s potential. These investments will highlight AI’s versatility and truly address whether it is aiding these industries or if it is a facade.
However, the true ROI of AI will lie within the following:
- Sustainability: Our beautiful planet is crying and there are major concerns that many organisations are not meeting their ESG goals. If organisations do not have an element of sustainability in their business model, will they see a true ROI?
- Standardisation: Currently AI is being used as a competitive advantage for many organisations. However, will it become a standard practice to ensure business success or will it still be in the hands of the organisations with the capital to scale?
- Collaboration: Will AI tools and resources be widespread across organisations so that all teams and employees benefit from the ROI of AI? Or will it be subjected to teams that require it the most?
AI ROI in 2025
Throughout 2025 we will start to see AI become increasingly mainstream with it being implemented in all industries, from the top all the way down to the bottom. But the real question is: will the investment match up with the benefits?
Nisha Arya is a data scientist, freelance technical writer, and an editor and community manager for KDnuggets. She is particularly interested in providing data science career advice or tutorials and theory-based knowledge around data science. Nisha covers a wide range of topics and wishes to explore the different ways artificial intelligence can benefit the longevity of human life. A keen learner, Nisha seeks to broaden her tech knowledge and writing skills, while helping guide others.