Buy vs. Build: Key Considerations When Selecting an AI Solution

According to Gartner, “AI promises to be the most disruptive class of technologies during the next ten years due to advances in computational power, volume, velocity, and variety of data, as well as advances in deep neural networks (DNNs).” When introducing AI into an organization, the most prevalent topic of the many conversations we have had with clients, industry partners, and business leaders has been the decision whether to buy vs. build an AI solution to deliver business value. It can be a daunting task to identify the AI solution best suited for a specific set of business needs. Whether you’re weighing your options of either investing upfront to develop your AI solutions in-house or looking to spending less upfront to buy your AI solutions commercially, the roadmap to making the right decision isn’t always easy. There are pros and cons to both options and you just have to evaluate which works best for your business goals.

There are some key considerations when evaluating your AI solution options and whether to buy or build, including customization of your AI solution, initial or long-term investment, ownership of data, implementation timeline, solution maintenance, and ability to evolve your solution to fit your needs over time. Depending on your goals, certain considerations will hold more weight than others when you’re trying to make this important decision. Prioritize the outcome that you want from the solution you buy or build and navigate your decision-making process based on the outcome you’re looking for.

Make sure you’re investing in the right place when it comes to AI solutions and align your decision with your business goals. Check out our simple matrix where we have distilled key deciding factors and weighed the pros and cons around cost, vendors, and solution flexibility to help you tackle the hard decision between buy vs. build with confidence.