How to adopt AI for business transformation

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How to adopt AI for business transformation

  • 05 June 2025

  • Infrastructure

Reading time: 7 minutes

Ability to adapt is one of the most important attributes for any business, and the artificial intelligence revolution will require new levels of agility and adaptation from both companies and investors. Ardian can leverage its scale and internal expertise to capture the benefits of AI both internally and for its portfolio companies.

 

AI megatrend is reshaping the global economy

The transformative potential of generative AI is becoming increasingly evident. 

 

  • 20+

    projects conducted with our portfolio companies by our Data Science team

  • 900 employees

    engaged with GAIA once since its launch in November 2024

  • 60

    Ardian participants in our AI hackathon in July 2024

Speaking at Ardian’s AI x AI conference in October 2024, the economist Prof. Philippe Aghion captured the revolutionary nature of this technology: “AI automates tasks not only in the production of good and services but also in the production of ideas. So, it becomes easier to find new ideas.” This, he argued, is how AI will boost productivity growth.

AI will transform the competitive dynamics of virtually every industry by providing a tool to help companies accelerate innovation, provide better, faster service to their clients, automate more of their operations and become more efficient. The winners will see their growth accelerate and their market share expand. AI will change the way people do their jobs. Many roles will evolve as lower-value tasks are automated, enabling workers to focus more on higher-value activities. Decisions once taken by humans may be delegated to AI, challenging authorities to ensure these systems operate ethically, transparently and are properly regulated.

AI automates tasks not only in the production of good and services but also in the production of ideas. So, it becomes easier to find new ideas.

Philippe Aghion, Economist

At the same time, the spread of AI will hugely increase the demand for electricity to power the compute in data centers. Unless low-carbon energy capacity can keep pace with demand, this will increase global greenhouse gas emissions. Ardian is addressing AI on multiple levels. It is investing directly in the AI value chain through Verne, a sustainable data center platform, and companies such as Jakala and Artefact that help large businesses apply AI to their operations. It is using AI internally to gather and process data more quickly, amplifying the impact of its established Data Science team. 

And through Ardian’s Digital Transformation team, it is working with portfolio companies to ensure they are among their industry’s winners in the race to harness this transformative technology.                                        

Ardian’s Data Science and Digital Transformation teams work in close collaboration with portfolio companies to support them.

 

What are the main priorities for Ardian’s AI strategy?

Pauline Thomson: Keeping our finger on the pulse of AI is obviously a strategic priority for Ardian.

We are working with experts including Artefact, an AI consultancy that is part of the Expansion portfolio, to develop tools that let us tap into the strengths of AI while keeping our confidential data secure. We see a lot of opportunities to automate parts of what we do and to use AI’s predictive capabilities, but we think it is vital to have ‘humans in the loop’ so that AI augments the way we work but the final decisions lie with us. 

Human critical thinking remains essential to Ardian’s success, even in the age of AI.

Pauline Thomson, Head of Data Science and Clément Marty, Head of Digital Transformation

Clément Marty: As part of our mission to support digitalization across our portfolios, the Digital Transformation team is watching AI’s impact on our portfolio companies and the sectors they operate in very carefully. We work closely with the investment teams and portfolio company managements to help them implement AI tools and we create opportunities for our companies to learn from each other and share insights.

We work closely with the investment teams and portfolio company managements to help them implement AI tools and we create opportunities for our companies to learn from each other and share insights.

Clément Marty, Head of Digital Transformation

How is AI impacting Ardian’s activities as an investment firm?

P.T: The most visible impact internally is the rollout of GAIA, our in-house generative AI chatbot, which we launched at end of last year. GAIA is allowing us to explore how AI can enhance the productivity of Ardian’s teams, for example by summarizing and comparing documents. The pressure for speed in areas like deal execution is increasing – having the capability to analyse the contents of a data room much faster is a competitive advantage. AI has big implications for asset managers, which is why we organized our AI conference last October in Paris, “The AI Imperative: rethinking alternative investment”, to explore the subject with a range of portfolio companies and guest experts.

 

Which use cases are you pursuing for AI?

P.T: Where to apply AI is one of the most important decisions we face. AI is so versatile that its adoption will affect virtually every company and industry.

Our approach is always to start from the business need or pain point we are trying to solve, rather than starting with the technology. We see great potential to use AI to improve our prediction capabilities. We can use it to run multiple simulations, for example, so that we can more easily model multiple outcomes to aid decision making. It is also powerful in areas such as portfolio construction and market screening.These are all topics we are working on. 

C.M: At the portfolio company level, we are helping our management teams adopt AI and capture its potential for their business. We have partnered with Artefact to help identify the most relevant applications of AI at every company in the Expansion portfolio.

One portfolio company is running radiology centers. They are currently implementing AI solutions to accelerate appointment-making for patients and to make more accurate diagnosis, hence directly improving quality of service.


What challenges do portfolio companies face in applying AI to their business?

C.M: The challenges vary, depending on how much expertise the company has internally. But one common issue for companies is to identify the capabilities they need in-house and those they should outsource so they can build the most relevant AI solutions.

Our experience shows it is not enough simply to create AI tools, the key is to make sure they are used. To maximize adoption and generate the benefits, companies must get their organizational set-up right. One way to do it is the Ardian Digital Catalyst Day: we gathered more than 40 technology leaders from portfolio companies so that they can share experience and best practices on topics like prioritizing use cases, optimizing the tech stack, managing costs and driving change within their organizations.
 

We gathered more than 40 technology leaders from portfolio companies so that they can share experience and best practices on topics like prioritizing use cases, optimizing the tech stack, managing costs and driving change within their organizations.

Clément Marty, Head of Digital Transformation

How are you supporting responsible use of AI?

P.T: Ardian took part in the AI Action Summit, organized by the French Government in Paris in February 2025. We joined heads of state and technology and business leaders to discuss responsible AI development and governance strategies. We also joined the Coalition for Sustainable AI that was formed as part of the AI Action Summit.

C.M: Artefact is also fully committed to responsible AI and in 2022 it was awarded the Responsible and Trusted AI label by LabelIA Labs, an independent association. This recognizes the company’s proven commitment to responsible AI practices.

Supporting Ardian’s in-house AI innovators

In July 2024, Ardian organized the latest edition of Ardian Start-Up Studio, sponsored by Microsoft. Start-Up Studio challenges our employees to come up with innovative ideas that support Ardian’s business, with the latest edition focused on AI. Numerous proposals were put forward and the teams of employees who submitted them were invited to Paris to pitch their projects to a panel of judges that included Philippe Limantour, Chief Technology and Cybersecurity Officer of Microsoft France. Three winning projects are in development with funding from Microsoft. Start-Up Studio demonstrates how Ardian fosters collective intelligence and an entrepreneurial spirit to accelerate in-house innovation.

  • Mathias_Burghardt_Conference_IA
    Ardian AI x AI Conference took place in Paris, Opéra Bastille, in October 2024 during which Mathias Burghardt, Executive Vice-President and CEO of Ardian France, presented Ardian’s AI vision.
    • Infrastructure

    • Mathias Burghardt

    • Pauline Thomson

    • AI

    • Ardian UK