Today, AI is being actively introduced into businesses, and many perceive it as a universal solution for scaling and reducing costs. But is this really the case? Logic often sounds:

 "I pay an employee 1.8 million rubles a year, which means I can invest this money in AI." In fact, everything is more complicated.

 Why doesn't this approach work?:

AI is not just a developer's salary.

 Are needed: 

– quality data,

 – infrastructure (cloud, API, servers),

 – interfaces,

 – escorts,

 – regular updates.

Even a simple project can cost 3-5 times more than an employee's annual salary. And payback can take years.

Let's give an example of our recent case, when a custom AI system paid off.

The B2B company's warehouse network (logistics and distribution) suffered from constant errors in forecasting balances.

The problem: standard solutions did not take into account the specifics of the business (seasonality, regions, fluctuations in demand from corporate clients).

The goal: to increase the accuracy of the procurement forecast and minimize excess balances.

Instead of a boxed solution, the team followed the path of developing its own AI system.

Project cost: 6.8 million rubles.

Launch date: 9 months

Payback: the first significant results are in 1.5 years

As a result, forecasting accuracy increased from 64% to 91%, excess balances decreased by 32%, and losses from overdue goods decreased by almost half. After 2.5 years, the project has fully paid off, and now the system saves about 5 million rubles a year.

Why the custom turned out to be better:

– took into account business logic and complex dependencies,

 – integrated into ERP,

 – It is possible to flexibly adapt to new conditions.

Positive:

, works 24/7

➕ does not get tired

➕ reduces the influence of the human factor

 Minuses: 

– instability in non-standard situations

– not suitable for complex emotional interactions

What to consider before implementation: 

– Full costs (development + maintenance)

 – Alternatives: always compare custom with box

 – Terms of return on investment

Not always a ready—made solution is better. Sometimes customization is the way to long—term benefits. The main thing is not to confuse HYPE with economics.