Consumer Utilities
WHERE CAN AI BE OF BENEFIT TO UTILITIES?
Water. Energy. Telecoms. These utilities are day-to-day essentials for consumers. Yet those same consumers also expect seamless interactions, excellent standards of service and big shifts towards sustainability. Meanwhile, legacy infrastructure and workflows often stand in the way of the step-changes utility companies are expected to make.
Brightbeam’s founders have worked intensively alongside businesses operating in this space. Which is why we don’t argue that AI has the answers to every problem faced by utility providers. What we do know is that you can use it to successfully address critical business issues when you apply AI in context.
Demand Forecasting
Operational Issue
Inaccurate predictions are leading to mismatches in supply and demand.
What we can do
Cleanse multiple data sources and establishing customised predictive analytics with AI tools.
The impact we can make
Precision forecasting resulting in optimal resource allocation and reduced wastage.
Challenges in adapting to seasonal variations are creating P&L anomalies.
What we can do
Ingest historical data and integrating this with real-time information to create adaptive, scenario-based AI models.
The impact we can make
Stable and precise estimates resulting in efficient resource distribution and cost savings.
Infrastructure Maintenance
Operational Issue
Unplanned outages due to unforeseen infrastructure failures are risking regulatory scrutiny and higher trading costs.
What we can do
Use AI to combine IoT sensor data with equipment specifications and previous maintenance schedules to foresee maintenance needs.
The impact we can make
Fewer ad hoc outages resulting in far less downtime for the business and better service reliability for consumers.
Inefficient manual inspection processes across disparate assets are adding significant liabilities to the balance sheet.
What we can do
Programme visual data from drones as well as automated utility inspections into custom generative AI platforms.
The impact we can make
Clear and cost-effective inspection reporting resulting in the timely detection of errors and an extended lifespan for expensive equipment.
Customer Service
Operational Issue
Delayed responses to service disruptions or complaints are leading customers to switch to competitors.
What we can do
Create new or improving existing chatbot algorithms with natural language processing for instant query resolution.
The impact we can make
Immediate responses resulting in improve customer satisfaction and brand loyalty.
Generic and impersonal customer interactions aren’t meeting consumer expectations.
What we can do
Combine sources of customer data from across the business – including usage patterns – via AI to personalize customer communications.
The impact we can make
Higher levels of personalisation resulting in higher customer engagement rates and referrals.
Sustainability
Operational Issue
Over-reliance on non-renewable energy sources is making it harder to demonstrate progress towards ESG targets compared to the rest of the market.
What we can do
Apply generative AI to the integration of renewable energy source data for minute-by-minute reporting on sustainability progress.
The impact we can make
Universal reporting resulting in a lower carbon footprint and demonstrable progress towards sustainability goals.
Inefficient energy storage is producing unnecessary waste and lower earnings.
What we can do
Write AI algorithms based on individual requirements to optimize storage and release based on demand.
The impact we can make
Investments in the right place resulting in renewable energy kept in the system and fewer inefficiencies.
