At Innovation Day, Alex van Gestel, VP and Head of Benelux and Consumer & Services EMEA, opened the afternoon with a clear message: organizations that know how to harness AI aren’t waiting for the future. They’re already seeing results.
Innovation Day was designed to spotlight that shift. A space for leaders, technologists, and creatives to explore how AI is moving from concept to capability. The theme, AI Made Real, reflects a growing urgency across industries: to move beyond experimentation and start building solutions that scale.
Alex explained that the event was curated by Empathy Lab because our clients are already embedding AI into core business operations to unlock measurable outcomes. Innovation Day was an opportunity to share insights and expertise with CMOs and marketing decision-makers, learning how these organizations are building real solutions at scale.
From concept to capability
Alex outlined how client maturity has evolved over the past two years, not only at Empathy Lab but across the wider EPAM portfolio. Early efforts centered on education and isolated proofs of concept. These have since evolved into MVPs and hybrid solutions, with growing attention on cost optimization, responsible AI, and enterprise-wide adoption.
“Clients are asking sharper questions, aligning AI with business goals, and building with purpose.”
Alex van Gestel, VP, Head of Benelux, Empathy Lab by EPAM
Closing the gap between investment and impact
Despite significant investment, many organizations still struggle to extract value from GenAI. A September 2025 article in Harvard Business Review titled What Companies with Successful AI Pilots Do Differently claimed that 95% of GenAI programs fail to deliver bottom-line returns. This means that only a small fraction is generating meaningful returns.
Teams that do generate ROI are the ones that approach AI with clarity and discipline, integrating it into workflows and measuring outcomes.
Alex shared examples of where AI is already making a difference within the wider EPAM portfolio:
- Personalized marketing driving up to 15% sales uplift
- Predictive maintenance reducing operating costs by 10–20%
- Intelligent automation cutting process costs by up to 40%
- Supply chain and capital optimization contributing up to 30% EBITDA impact
Making AI work at scale
Scaling AI requires more than technology. Alex emphasized the importance of structure, governance, and culture. Successful organizations are investing in federated data platforms, AI/ML infrastructure, and change management. They’re building ecosystems that support both innovation and execution.
Bold question: If AI were part of your DNA, not your tech stack, how would you reimagine the way you create, collaborate and compete?
Ask your team this: If we built an ecosystem where human creativity and machine intelligence coexisted by design, how unstoppable could we become?
Final reflection
Alex closed his talk with a reminder that AI is changing how businesses operate, how teams collaborate, and how value is created. Innovation Day captured that momentum. It brought together the people and ideas driving the next wave of transformation.
Empathy Lab makes this possible by designing an experience that connects strategy with execution, and vision with reality. Our work shows what’s possible when AI stops serving the business and starts becoming part of its DNA.
How to start unlocking enterprise-wide value with AI
Want to turn AI from a buzzword to a business-wide growth engine? A product optimizer, a cost reducer, a value creator? Here’s how to get started:
1. Identify your value hotspots: Pinpoint where AI can drive the biggest impact, such as dynamic pricing, demand forecasting, fraud detection, supply-chain optimization, or workforce productivity.
2. Prioritize one high-ROI use case: Choose a single opportunity with clear upside, e.g. faster revenue conversion, reduced churn, tighter risk control or improved operational efficiency. Then make it your proving ground.
3. Map the data and workflows: Understand what data, systems and teams are needed to activate the use case. Clarify how AI integrates into existing processes and where it augments human decision-making.
4. Pilot, measure, scale: Launch a focused pilot, track ROI rigorously and use the results to build momentum for broader enterprise adoption.
And finally, you don’t have to do this alone. If you’re looking for a partner to help you navigate AI confidently and accelerate real business impact, get in touch with our experts today.
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