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Industry / AI

Is industry truly ready to use AI to its full potential?

Alexandre Touchot

Alexandre Touchot

Founder & CEO, Helium

·
April 10th, 2026·2 min read

In industry — whether in engineering, production, or operations — data is everywhere. And right now, everyone is asking how to leverage their own data using AI.

A small anecdote: at the Global Industrie 2026 trade show last week, I spoke with several machine tool manufacturers, and it's clear that AI isn't necessarily top of mind for everyone right now. In a market of physical goods where business is stable, the focus is on keeping operations running rather than introducing new ways of working.

For others — and I count myself among them ;-) — AI is very much front of mind, because we sense that competitiveness is about to reach a new level, and those who start late will lose a major competitive edge.

The question of everyday AI adoption, as we see it within teams, is far more complex than simply putting a tool in everyone's hands. The benefit is maximized when each person internalizes the technique and the discipline, producing an effect that serves the collective.

It requires accepting that you need to dedicate some time to learning — to truly master the leverage effect that comes with this new way of working.

This is where training comes in. Here are a few simple learning milestones, precisely calibrated:

  1. Build your own AI agent There are a few tools to get familiar with, but the process can be very quick. And if you genuinely don't have the time, a partner can develop an agent tailored exactly to one or more of your processes.

  2. Fully delegate a low-value task This is about efficiency and time savings — think scheduled tasks that free up your internal resources for more critical work.

  3. Build a fully custom application from scratch This is personally my favorite lever, because it opens up incredible possibilities for resolving bottlenecks or eliminating low-value tasks. It's also the one that unlocks creativity, now that the technical barriers have been lowered.

What about you — which levers do you want to activate starting today?

#maintenance #industrialmaintenance #AI #industry #innovation #GlobalIndustrie #GIAwards #digitaltransformation

Helium helps you deploy AI across your processes by providing the building blocks to equip your approach.