In a nutshell:
- AI predictions are more valuable than insights for business optimization.
- Predictive models guide actions to improve processes.
- Traditional analytics and BI tools are better for understanding existing data.
- AI focuses on prescribing future actions based on incoming data.
Zohar Bronfman, Pecan’s CEO and co-founder, discusses the role of insights and predictions in your business in the video above — or read on for more!
Making the Most of AI: Insights vs. Predictions
Many leaders wonder how to best leverage AI to improve their businesses. They’re curious about the “insights” that AI can provide.
But they’re looking for the wrong thing in the wrong place. The real value of AI predictive models lies in the predictions themselves — not the insights.
Guiding Business Actions
Predictive models guide specific actions to optimize processes. For example, a model could predict which customers are most likely to churn. You could then proactively reach out to those high-risk customers with retention offers.
That means you can potentially retain customers before they leave your business—a far more efficient way to keep your business going strong.
It’s rare that raw AI insights alone provide new business understanding. The power lies in acting on predictions.
Deriving Human Intelligence
If you’re looking simply to better understand your business, AI isn’t necessarily the tool you need. Instead, valuable business insights are better uncovered through traditional analytics and BI tools.
By using these tools, data analysts and business users can better understand patterns in your existing data. That’s certainly useful, but it doesn’t position you to take action in the future, when new data arrive every second that won’t be analyzed until weeks or months later.
AI predictions, on the other hand, focus solely on prescribing future actions. A predictive AI model takes your incoming, new data, and routinely analyzes it (usually on a schedule you set) to generate an ongoing flow of predictions about the future. You’re equipped to take informed action that anticipates future impacts on your business.
Start Optimizing Your Business
Don’t just take my word for it — see the power of AI predictions yourself!
Book a demo today! Our automated machine learning platform provides predictions that can immediately start optimizing your key business processes.
Zohar Bronfman is the co-founder and CEO of Pecan AI, working at the intersection of machine learning, causality, and real-world decision-making. He holds two PhDs—one in computational neuroscience and one in the philosophy of science—bringing an unusually rigorous lens to applied AI. Zohar focuses on turning predictive models into systems that reliably change outcomes inside complex organizations. He is a frequent voice on the future of AI and decision intelligence, with appearances in top-tier tech and business media and on leading industry podcasts. His work bridges deep theory and execution, aiming to make artificial intelligence both more accessible and more consequential.
