Capturing the AI moment for SMEs

Imagine a business partner who can work around the clock, handle tedious tasks, and even help you attract new customers. That’s the power of AI for small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs). Many SMEs experimented with AI last year, but it’s a huge opportunity for resource-strapped companies in 2025 to transform and innovate. In fact, our research shows that AI has the potential to boost our economy by $230 million and save the average Canadian worker 175 hours per year. 

There are several tangible areas where SMEs can leverage AI to create lasting impact. First, AI can analyze customer data quickly and efficiently to develop personalized product recommendations for customers and marketing campaigns, helping unlock new revenue streams. Second, AI-powered chatbots can easily handle common customer inquiries like questions around shipping or return policies, helping free up employees to focus on more complex requests. Lastly, AI can automate tasks like scheduling, data entry and inventory management, freeing up teams to focus on strategic initiatives like client acquisition and business expansion.

In our polling of SMEs who are early adopters of AI, 50% of leaders use (or plan to use) AI to save time, 46% to save money, 43% to grow their business and 55% to work more efficiently. For example, I’m impressed with Viral Nation’s launch of a brand reputation solution powered by Google Cloud’s Gemini models, which helps companies mitigate risks in influencer marketing campaigns. And Oakville-based telematics provider Geotab uses Google Cloud’s AI to capture data from 1.4 million vehicles to help global manufacturers and distributors better identify inefficiencies and optimize deliveries, drivers and vehicles.

SMEs need to start now. The businesses that embrace this technology won’t just improve their operations – they’ll be able to provide better service to customers, find new revenue streams, and level the playing field with larger competitors. The question for SMEs isn’t whether to adopt AI, only how best to use it to achieve your goals.

Sam Sebastian

VP and Country Manager for Google Cloud in Canada

Sam Sebastian is the VP and Country Manager for Google Cloud in Canada. In this role, he is responsible for all Cloud & AI business operations in Canada and scaling Google’s enterprise technology division to the private and public sectors in Canada. Prior to Google, Sam was the President and CEO of Pelmorex Corp. Sam joined Pelmorex from Google, where he held many executive-level positions in the US and Canada, including VP & Country Manager for Canada. Prior to this, he was a General Manager and Senior Vice President at a large online classified business, Classified Ventures (cars.com, apartments.com).