8 reasons why businesses should be developing their large language models (LLMs)

The use of large language models is now an essential resource for businesses, allowing them to continue to innovate and to keep up with the competition. Of course, with the development of artificial intelligence seeping into business at all levels, it's difficult to opt out of this technological advancement — it's fast becoming a must-have in the world of business. Large language models (LLMs) have developed into powerful tools with the ability to enhance communications, automatize complex tasks, and promote operational efficacy. While pre-trained models are widely available, many businesses are beginning to realize the advantages of developing their own, customized LLM. To give you an idea of just how revolutionary an LLM can be for your business, we've put together this article with 8 reasons why businesses should consider creating their own large language models.

1. Customization and adaptation to specific needs

Every business is unique and faces its own challenges, vocabulary, and specific needs. A generic LLM won't always be able to really grasp these particularities, which limits its potential, whereas developing an in-house model allows a business to personalize the model's language to better align it with its activities. This then means that the LLM can form a more refined and extensive understanding of the data, in turn leading to more pertinent results.

2. Data confidentiality and total control

Data confidentiality is a major issue in today's increasingly digital world, and it's creeping up the list of priorities for many businesses, and particularly for those working in regulated sectors. By developing their own LLMs, businesses can guarantee that they exercise and maintain total control over their sensitive data. This eliminates risks associated with the disclosure of confidential information to third parties.

3. Performance optimization for specific tasks

Generic language models are often designed to be versatile, and while in some uses this can be a plus, in other situations it can quickly lead to processing overloads involving business-specific tasks. With an in-house LLM, businesses can optimize the model specifically for certain tasks, boosting performances and reducing processing times.

4. Seamless integration with current systems

Most businesses use specific software systems to facilitate their day-to-day operations. An LLM developed in-house can be transparently integrated into these systems, avoiding any potential issues of incompatibility. Seamless integration guarantees simpler use and hassle-free transitions.

5. Driving innovation and standing out from the competitive crowd

Businesses engaged in highly competitive sectors are constantly having to find new ways to innovate and to stand out from the crowd. A customized LLM can really drive a business' innovations, enabling it to develop unique linguistic features that adapt to market needs at any given moment. This can really give the business a competitive edge that empowers it pull ahead of the competition.

6. Long-term budget control

There's no point in avoiding the facts. The initial development of an LLM requires substantial investments. However, it's an investment that can be incredibly profitable in the long term. External language models are often based on pricing per subscription or per transaction, according to which the costs can really start to stack up as use of the technology becomes increasingly frequent. Having your own model gives you control over these long-term costs.

7. Keeping up with the ever-changing world of business

The world of business is a volatile environment that's constantly changing and shifting. An in-house LLM offers better flexibility so that businesses can quickly react and adapt to changes in their industry or to any new commercial challenges that arise. Modifications and adjustments can be made by internal staff, guaranteeing maximum reactivity.

8. Quality control and ethical monitoring

To avoid any nasty surprises, it's absolutely essential that the data used to train the language model undergo a quality control process. When a business develops an in-house LLM, it can guarantee ethical use of the technology and uphold high quality standards, aligning the model with its values and principles.

To wrap things up, developing an in-house large language model (LLM) has countless, significant advantages for any business looking to optimize its use of natural language. There are certainly many good reasons for a business to make the decision to develop their own LLM. These include personalization and adaptation to specific needs, data confidentiality, guaranteed control of content, performance optimization, and promotion of innovation. While there is a not insignificant price that comes with developing an LLM, the long-term advantages in terms of budget, flexibility, and competitive edge often outweigh the challenge of making that initial investment. Any business with its own large language model can undoubtedly leverage this powerful tool to unlock its full potential for effective strategic development in its target markets.

So, if your business is ready to take the leap, Powerling is here to help you develop your own LLM. You can count on our expertise, which we’ve honed over more than 25 years of experience in managing multilingual content and in developing several applications and software for linguistic management.