Accenture invests in gen AI firm Writer to help enterprises boost productivity

Technology consulting major Accenture on Tuesday has announced that it is making a strategic investment in Writer, a platform leveraging generative AI to streamline content creation in the workplace. 

Writer's goal is to assist enterprises in incorporating AI-driven applications that enhance productivity and deliver tangible business benefits across various functions, including customer support, operations, product development, sales, human resources, and marketing. Enterprises can seamlessly integrate generative AI into their content creation and other workflows, enabling them to extract valuable insights from their internal data securely. 

Baiju Shah, chief strategy officer of Accenture Song said, “We’ve entered a new era of tech-powered creativity and believe Writer’s enterprise-ready platform is a strong addition to Accenture’s comprehensive set of generative AI capabilities, tools and expertise, helping our clients capitalize on a wide range of uses across marketing and sales.” 

The company has already integrated Writer into its marketing and communications division, where professionals use it to generate written content, synthesize diverse materials, and align their writing with voice and brand guidelines. The company originally adopted Writer in 2021 to enhance its writing proficiency and is now scaling up its generative AI capabilities for internal use, with plans to offer them to clients as part of its existing services. 

According to Accenture Research, the impact of Large Language Models (LLMs) will affect up to 40% of all working hours, and an overwhelming 98% of global executives foresee AI foundation models playing a pivotal role in their organizational strategies within the next three to five years. 

"Generative AI tools like Writer can drive greater creativity,” said Jill Kramer, chief marketing and communications officer of Accenture. “As we continue to expand the use of AI across our global marketing and communications function, the opportunities to enhance content creation, productivity and our entire marketing model are boundless.” 

Writer offers organizations the flexibility to deploy generative AI use cases tailored to their specific workflow requirements. These AI-driven applications are securely hosted on an organization's on-premises systems or private clouds, utilizing proprietary data and adhering to individual style and brand guidelines. 

Accenture has also made significant strides in AI, announcing a $3 billion investment in its Data & AI practice in June 2023. This investment aims to support clients across diverse industries in rapidly and responsibly adopting AI to drive growth, efficiency, and resilience.