// INDUSTRY INSIGHT //

Large companies are surging ahead with the use of AI, but what about SMEs? Cien Solon, CEO and Founder of LaunchLemonade, explains how the next stage of the AI revolution will focus on companies building their own AI to solve their own unique challenges. And unless AI creation is democratised, SMEs may find themselves locked out of the productivity and growth potential AI can achieve.

I is no longer confined to

Silicon Valley labs or global boardrooms. It is here embedded in everyday business tools, automating workflows, analysing data and shaping decisions at speed. According to a recent McKinsey survey, 62 % of respondents say their organisations are at least experimenting with AI agents, and 64 % say AI is actively enabling innovation. Yet despite this momentum, only 39 % report a meaningful profit impact at the enterprise level.

Beneath these headline figures lies a more troubling reality: while large enterprises surge ahead, SMEs risk being left behind. Most SMEs lack the access, expertise and affordability to build AI tools that solve their challenges. The next phase of the AI revolution will not be defined by who can build the biggest model or invest the most capital, but by who can access, shape and own AI tools that solve individuals’ unique challenges. And unless AI creation is democratised, SMEs may find themselves locked out of the productivity and growth potential AI can achieve.

An uneven playing field

Today’ s AI landscape overwhelmingly favours large enterprises. They have the budgets to hire specialist teams, the data to train sophisticated systems and the scale to absorb the cost of experimentation. For SMEs, the picture looks very different. Off-the-shelf AI tools often feel generic, expensive or poorly suited to niche operational challenges. Meanwhile, custom solutions typically require

AI has been sold as a plugand-play solution, but in reality most tools are built with enterprise needs in mind. SMEs are expected to adapt their processes to the technology, rather than the other way round.

This imbalance matters. SMEs make up over 99 % of UK businesses and account for a significant share of employment and economic output. If they cannot fully participate in the AI revolution, productivity gains will be uneven, innovation will stall and national competitiveness will suffer.

From AI consumption to AI creation

The next stage of AI adoption is a shift from consumption to creation. For most businesses today, AI is something they buy, subscribe to or bolt onto existing systems. However, true transformation happens when organisations can design and deploy AI tailored to specific workflows, customers and decision-making needs.

For SMEs, the real value of AI isn’ t using the same chatbot as everyone else, it’ s

BY LOWERING THE BARRIERS TO ENTRY, THESE PLATFORMS HELP CLOSE THE AI LITERACY GAP AND ENSURE INNOVATION IS NOT CONFINED TO THOSE WITH CODING SKILLS OR DEEP POCKETS.

Cien Solon, CEO and Founder, LaunchLemonade

Intelligent SME. tech

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