As artificial intelligence is reshaping industries at an unprecedented pace, experts from diverse sectors, including fintech, consumer goods and marketing, are adding to one fundamental truth. AI is not a singular entity, it has complex and multifaceted power. At Storyboard18 Global Pioneers Summit 2025, industry leaders emphasized that AI plays an integral role in increasing efficiency and effectiveness across business operations.
Ajay Dang, president and head of marketing at Ultratech, highlighted the transformational impact of AI on the company’s ability to serve millions of homes during a record time. Speaking at the summit, he noted that AI revolutionized B2B marketing by identifying key organizational needs with unprecedented accuracy. “The real value is identifying key business priorities, and AI has made the process much easier,” he said.
The fast-moving consumer goods sector also saw AI-driven improvements. Vrijesh Nagathan, Chief Information & Digital Technology Officer at Marico Ltd, shared how he has improved supply chain plans, leveraged AI to gain insight into changing market dynamics, and transformed those insights into actionable product innovations.
Kedar Ravangave, executive vice president of marketing at Kotak Mahindra Bank, said AI is a great enabler, but there is also a catch when it comes to how it is used to build relationships between financial data and consumers. He acknowledged the banking industry is undergoing a major shift from reactive to a predictive approach.
According to him, “Traditionally, banks analyze data to determine the eligibility of a customer’s loan. But now they use AI to actively partner with customers by asking questions like, “How can I support them?” ”
AI has revolutionized the way banks interact with consumers, enabling productivity and personalized support for customers.
In the case of Sundar Srinivasan, vice president of Microsoft AI & Search, India emerged as a leader in AI adoption, bringing great benefits to both cost-effectiveness and business expansion. “Personalization in marketing, in particular, is an area where AI has become an important enabler,” he says, highlighting the ways in which AI can help adjust brands to suit a particular consumer preference.
Anuradha Aggarwal, Amazon Pay’s Director of User Growth and Chief Marketing Officer, has witnessed AI-driven disruption across telecoms, consumer goods and financial technology. She advised marketers to adopt a “agile and agile” mindset to maintain long-term success. “Building deeper engagement with cutting-edge technology is important to moving forward,” she emphasized.
But as AI penetrates more aspects of business, ethical concerns are looming. Lavangave warned that hyperlocalization, a major AI-driven trend in banking, is a recipient with inherent risk. “It could be magic or surveillance,” he warned, adding that consumer trust is a successful linchpin. “If consumers feel they’re being monitored, it won’t work.”
Ultimately, industry leaders agreed that AI must be an ally, not an intruder. “As long as AI is not one of the intrusions, but a tool for empowerment, hyperlocalization will be effective,” concluded Lavangave.
As AI continues to redefine industry, the consensus among experts is clear. It is a powerful catalyst for efficiency, innovation and growth that is responsibly utilized.
Learn more about Storyboard18 Global Pioneers Summit
Global Pioneers Summit celebrates and explores the transformative possibilities of creativity, reinforcing individuals and businesses to think differently, act boldly, and create a future that resonates with their purpose and vision. Creativity is not just about artistic expression. It is the ability to solve real-world problems, innovate products, and create connections in ways that traditional methods cannot. And there’s the pioneer behind this shift.
The Global Pioneer Summit is shining the spotlight on global brands emerging from India as the finest celebration of visionary forces moving forward in business. From groundbreaking innovation to impactful storytelling, key decision makers and innovators who build insights and connections in business, marketing, advertising, technology, academia exchange and draw inspiration from the most engaging work industries that advance globally.
In today’s rapidly evolving world, creativity is a powerful force that drives business growth, shapes industry and influences social behavior, culture and values. Storyboard18 Global Pioneers Summit shines a spotlight on the true purpose and power of creativity and the pioneer leading.
