How is Hikvision doing in the face of digital transformation?

The implementation of AI applications must return to the essence of business.

The "3rd China Artificial Intelligence Security Summit" hosted by Leiphone.com & AI Gold Rush was officially held in Hangzhou.

The theme of this summit is "The reshuffle is over, the landscape is reshaped". At the meeting, 15 companies representing the next new decade shared their business philosophy and technology application methodology for the new decade of security with more than 1,000 listeners on site and hundreds of thousands of viewers online.

At the summit, Li Yaya, President of Hikvision's EBG Solutions Department, delivered a wonderful speech entitled "Enabling Digital Transformation and Serving Thousands of Industries".

Li Yaya introduced that Hikvision's current business is mainly divided into three parts: comprehensive security business, big data services and smart business.

Digital economy and digital transformation have become an inevitable trend, but AI delivery still faces some challenges, which can be summarized into three categories:

First, the scenarios are fragmented and the needs are differentiated. The weak replicability of the user end leads to the problem of difficulty in implementation;

The second is the complexity of delivery. Delivery involves many links, such as products, construction, algorithm optimization, information system integration, business process transformation, etc. How to simplify the delivery of complex systems requires many companies to think and respond together;

The third is cost control. It is very necessary to pay attention to the input-output ratio. Application construction without considering the cost is not conducive to sustainable development.

Li Yaya believes that the implementation of AI applications must return to the essence of business, that is, to solve user scenario-based and differentiated needs through products and systems, so that more users can enjoy the dividends of technological innovation and help users realize business value returns.

Digital transformation is a gradual process, with scenario-based transformation as the path, which needs to be supported by a systematic product system. In the enterprise field, Hikvision empowers the industry with digitalization from four dimensions: shortening the management distance, improving business efficiency, standardizing operating behaviors, and preventing safety hazards.

Hikvision adheres to the concept of open and inclusive cooperation, and works with partners to jointly implement the path of digital transformation; adhering to the principle of good deeds and practicing steadfastly, Hikvision allows innovative technologies and products to empower thousands of industries and open up new horizons for social security and development.

The following is the full text of Li Yaya’s speech, which has been edited by Leifeng.com AI Nuggets without changing the original meaning:

Li Yaya: Hello everyone, I am Li Yaya, head of Hikvision’s EBG Solutions Department. I am very happy to attend this forum today.

I believe that most of the friends here are familiar with Hikvision. Let me briefly report on the basic situation of Hikvision.

Hikvision was founded in 2001. Currently, our products and solutions have covered more than 150 countries and regions around the world. We have more than 40,000 employees, revenue last year was 57.6 billion, and we currently have 10 R&D bases.

Currently, our business mainly consists of three parts: one is comprehensive security business; two is big data service; three is smart business.

Hikvision’s products and business models are quite diverse, and what I will share today will revolve around one of them.

First, let’s take a look at the current technology development trends through several reports and data.

Many of you may have seen the numbers in these reports (see the PPT above). The numbers show that in 2020, 82% of CEOs believe that their company’s business will be affected by artificial intelligence in the future, and 67% of companies say that the primary growth momentum in the future will come from digital technology and business.

From these two information dimensions, digital transformation has been valued by more and more companies.

The three data below the PPT come from government reports:

First, according to the White Paper on China's Economic Development, in 2019, the proportion of digitalization in my country was 36%, and its growth rate was 11.1%. These two figures have actually far exceeded my country's GDP growth.

The second is the research report on the development of digital economy in G20 countries. It can be seen that the proportion of digital economy in GDP of G20 countries has shown an upward trend, among which the digital economy of GDP in the United Kingdom, the United States and Germany accounts for more than 60%.

The third is the Global Digital Economy Report. According to a report released by the United Nations, the size of the digital economy in 2019 is estimated to account for between 4.5% and 15.5% of the world's GDP.

These three figures show that digital transformation is recognized by people all over the world. Compared with the data of developed countries, China still has a lot of room for digital transformation.

Many people may have seen similar pictures to this one. The process of advancing from informatization to digitalization is not that digitalization replaces informatization, but informatization is also a part of digitalization. In this transformation process, many technologies are very important, including mobile Internet, IoT, artificial intelligence, etc.

From Hikvision's perspective, we are highly associated with two technologies: AI and IoT.

Therefore, in the past few years, Hikvision has been thinking about how to empower our users with its AIoT technology in the process of enterprise digital transformation and become a collaborator, participant and promoter in this historical process.

I believe everyone is familiar with the term digital twin, which describes the construction of a relationship of mutual mapping, association, and influence from the real physical world to the digital world of virtual space.

Data shows that in the process of transformation from the real world to the digital world, 60%-80% of the data is video. Therefore, video perception can be used as the sensor with the richest information. By structuring the perceived information to form data, visual cognition can be performed through the data to achieve insight and analysis, helping users from all walks of life to gain value.

Next, let’s talk about the challenges faced by the implementation of artificial intelligence technology. We briefly sorted out the three main challenges of AI implementation:

First, the scenarios are fragmented and the needs are differentiated. The weak replicability of the user end leads to the problem of difficulty in implementation;

The second is the complexity of delivery. Delivery involves many links, such as products, construction, algorithm optimization, information system integration, business process transformation, etc. How to simplify the delivery of complex systems requires many companies to think and respond together;

The third is cost control. It is very necessary to pay attention to the input-output ratio. Application construction without considering the cost is not conducive to sustainable development.

To solve the problem of difficult implementation, we still have to return to the essence of business. We summarize it in four sentences: ingenuity and quality, problem solving, technological innovation, and value-oriented.

In other words, we must first start with the quality of the product, and through products and systems, allow more users to enjoy the benefits of technological innovation, solve user scenario-based and differentiated problems and needs, and ultimately help users realize business value returns.

As mentioned earlier, digital transformation is based on video perception, but it is not limited to video perception.

Hikvision has also been thinking about this issue in recent years. Therefore, we have expanded from video perception to intelligent Internet of Things, integrating multi-dimensional perception capabilities while also building platform capabilities for intelligent Internet of Things.

With the continuous integration and application of the Internet of Things, information network and the Internet, the company launched a physical and information integration platform based on the AICloud architecture in 2019.

In 2020, based on new understanding, we integrated data and intelligence and put forward the concept of digital and intelligence integration.

Every enterprise has its own understanding of digital transformation. We believe that digital transformation is a gradual process, and scenario-based application is the path. Therefore, it is crucial to support scenario-based application through a systematic product system.

Based on this thinking, we provide a diversified support system, including urban operation management platforms for cities, digital enterprise management platforms for enterprises, and so on.

At the same time, through Hikvision's systematic hardware capabilities, we help our users and partners achieve digital transformation.

Today I mentioned a word repeatedly - partner. We have been thinking about how to apply AI capabilities and multi-dimensional perception capabilities to real digital scenarios.

We also know that technology alone is not enough, and we need everyone to work together to promote industry change. Hikvision will always uphold an open and integrated attitude and deeply open up our products, services, and standards. We will strive to build an open and integrated architecture and jointly promote the realization of the entire new digital business model.

In recent years, we have also done some AI implementation. Now I will talk about it from three aspects: for enterprises, for public services, and for partners.