Investigating AI Value Co-creation in the Customer Journey for Cloud Computing Firms

Abstract

In recent years, the world has been introduced to the new groundbreaking technology, artificial intelligence, which represents a paradigm shift in the way businesses operate. Despite this, the effect of artificial intelligence in the customer journey remains unexplored on a greater scale. In this scope, one industry that is interesting to research is the cloud computing industry. The firms operating within this industry have a significant advantage, as they have access to vast amounts of data compared to companies in other industries. These firms remain a subject for research, as the thesis investigates how artificial intelligence helps co-create value in the customer journey for cloud computing firms. The investigation is done through a qualitative study in which artificial intelligence users, developers, and an artificial intelligence marketing professor were interviewed to gain various perspectives. The thesis has provided several valuable insights after reviewing the interviewed respondents' answers concerning the theory and discussing the results. These insights result in the creation of a new customer journey model that cloud computing firms can utilize when wishing to integrate artificial intelligence into the customer journey. This model highlights the importance of data and ethics, which are crucial for the firm to consider. The insights also show how artificial intelligence can help co-create value in all three phases of the traditional customer journey through the integration of several artificial intelligence tools in each phase of the customer journey.