AI and WOW

AI and WOW

As mentioned in previous communications, we have conducted extensive testing with AI for user experience and research, with mixed results. However, AI is here to stay and does appear to be learning quickly.

We have found it useful for directing research when answering open-ended questions, but we do not use it as a source, as it does not adequately differentiate between verified and unverified information. Having said that, we continue to test AI capabilities and will consider incorporating elements when they become useful and reliable.

Noma will be sending out a more detailed communication on our use of AI in industry research and how our reports differentiate from AI-generated industry information in the next few days.

Enhanced search in WOWEB

Earlier this year, we introduced enhanced search capability via the ‘Home’ tab in WOWEB, enabling users to easily search our complete library of industry research reports, companies, directors, and TakeOver Talk. It also allows for the use of Boolean logic operators to refine searches and limit potentially non-relevant results.

The extensive use of this search capability by many of our clients is encouraging and indicative of how it is assisting users to find relevant research more efficiently.

Industry SWOT

We’ve recently had an enquiry about replacing the SWOT section in our historical industry reports with the Industry Summary section in current reports, and I thought it useful to provide context in this communique.   In our pursuit for continuous improvement and responsiveness to client feedback, in July 2023, after taking academic advice, we replaced the SWOT analysis in industry reports with an Industry Summary, which reflects external factors such as Opportunities, Challenges and Threats. We also introduced sections on Key Trends and Key Issues.

The rationale is that a SWOT analysis is company-specific:

• Internal to the company: Strengths and Weaknesses
• External to the company: Opportunities and Threats

Threats to an industry could be an opportunity for one industry player and a threat to another. Similarly, an industry opportunity that cannot be exploited by an industry player could represent a threat. Therefore, it is potentially misleading to present it as such.

Industry reports and blogs

WOW executive director, Maureen Mphatsoe, writes blogs on some of our industry reports, which can be accessed on our public website.  Latest blogs include:

• South Africa’s Rail at a Crossroads: Fixing Transnet to Drive Industrial Growth
• The possibility of a power shift from Eskom and renewables producers in South Africa
• Preserving and Processing of Fruit and Vegetables in South Africa
• Is the Tyre Industry in South Africa running flat?

Recently published industry reports listed below are insightful, including highlighting Lake Volta, the world’s third largest man-made lake after Lake Kariba in Zimbabwe and Zambia and the Bratsk Reservoir in Russia , which was created by damming the Volta River in the early 1960s shortly after independence from the UK. The report on Sea and Coastal Transport in Ghana describes how it is a navigable lake serving as a waterborne highway running the length of the country.