Looking for more insight into what clients might be up to? Here are four insights that could give you an edge with a client or two, focusing on artificial intelligence, security of confidential documents, smart cities and DevOps.

REAL PAYOFFS FROM ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Are you fielding more work related to artificial intelligence? Most businesses have apparently discovered what AI can do for them. An overwhelming majority of global companies see the use of AI as "essential" to competitiveness, while half see the technology as "transformative," according to India-based services and consultancy powerhouse Tata Consultancy Services. The study found that AI is spreading across almost all areas of a company, with the biggest adopters using it to detect security intrusions, user issues and to deliver automation. But in three years, Tata found that for about one-third of the 835 executives it surveyed, AI's greatest impact will be in sales, marketing or customer service, while one in five – 20 percent -- see AI's impact being largest in non-customer facing corporate functions, including finance, strategic planning, corporate development, and HR.

DOUBLING DOWN ON CONFIDENTIAL DOCUMENTS

How well do your customers lock down confidential documents? According to the Business Performance Innovation (BPI) Network, there's a widespread and growing need to improve security practices surrounding those documents in most organizations. The BPI survey found that six of every 10 respondents said they or someone they know have accidentally sent out a document they should not have. Further, 89 percent of survey takers believe document security risks are growing in their organizations due to increased connectivity and the proliferation of mobile devices. Their biggest concern? Accidental sharing of confidential documents with a wrong party.

DOES CITY HALL SEE 'SMART' ON THE HORIZON?

Want to get in on the "smart city" action? Governments are realizing the benefits smart city projects can have on economic opportunity, sustainability and quality of life, according to the research arm of Navigant Consulting. A report from Navigant says there are more than 250 smart city projects from 178 cities around the world, and the majority focus on government and energy initiatives, followed by transportation, buildings, and water goals. As the number of smart city projects increases globally, cities are pursuing higher levels and a greater variety of integration among technology-driven city services and solutions, according to a statement from Navigant. “Leading cities are looking at how they can build on their initial investment in open data and the data feeds being provided by Internet of Things applications,” says Christina Jung, an analyst with Navigant Research.

CAN YOU HAVE 'DEVOPS' WITHOUT THE 'SEC?'

DevOps may help accelerate software development, but the top development organizations ensure that automated security becomes part of their DevOps practices at every project phase, and even when projects scale, according to software supply chain automation vendor Sonatype. Its survey of its DevSecOps community revealed that two-thirds of respondents describe their practices as very mature or of "improving maturity," it said in a statement. The survey found that developers are taking more responsibility for security with 24 percent of all respondents saying it’s a top concern; in mature DevOps organizations, that number rises to 38 percent. Where traditional development and operations teams see security teams and policies slowing them down, DevOps teams have discovered new ways to integrate security at the speed of development, Sonatype reported. Only 28 percent of mature DevOps teams believe they're being slowed by security requirements.