High-Tech

Businesses Are Embracing AI

INDUSTRIES ACROSS THE GARDEN STATE ARE USING AI TO AUTOMATE REPETITIVE PROCESSES AND SPEND MORE TIME DOING “HUMAN” WORK.

By Jennifer Lesser, Contributing Writer On Mar 4, 2026

The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has impacted nearly every industry at this point, from real estate and accounting to healthcare and manufacturing. Though concerns around AI usage still run the gamut – from security issues to ethical considerations – it also continues to be touted as a way to automate tasks and enhance efficiency and decision-making. Many Garden State businesses are finding that the implementation of AI is leading to everything from cost savings to innovation, and that AI is handling more repetitive tasks so that human workers are available to take on more strategic roles, solve complex issues and scale their businesses.

Hospitals

Cathy Bennett, president and CEO of the New Jersey Hospital Association (NJHA), notes that New Jersey’s hospitals and healthcare networks are starting to use AI to take over some of the routine “behind the scenes” work, such as paperwork and scheduling to improve efficiency. She notes that it’s also starting to be used in imaging, diagnosis support, and even predicting which patients could get sicker. “These tools can ease burnout and help catch health problems earlier,” she explains.

However, when it comes to a patient’s medical care, the use of AI introduces a number of challenges that have yet to be fully addressed, such as if the technology is producing accurate, unbiased results that are applicable to everyday clinical work in a capacity that doctors and nurses can trust. “To manage this, hospitals are putting clear rules and safeguards in place so that people – not computers – make the final decisions. They are building testing, fairness checks, and data security into their systemwide policies instead of handling AI as one-off tech projects,” Bennett says.

Banking

When it comes to the banking industry, AI is also being used for everything from cybersecurity and fraud detection and prevention to marketing and customer service. “AI has many benefits; it can increase efficiencies and save time on projects, help enhance the customer experience and drive innovation,” says Michael Affuso, president and CEO of the New Jersey Bankers Association (NJBankers), noting that AI is of particular use in banking because it’s a very compliance and form-driven industry. Banks are also using AI as a means of checking the work of employees to ensure that data is gathered correctly, as well as to import information.

“AI limits some human error, such as the transposition of numbers,” Affuso adds. “And on the banking side, AI can be used to assist in regulatory compliance – which allows banks to operate more efficiently.”

To that end, NJBankers is placing increased emphasis on educating its members on how to effectively implement AI within their day-to-day operations. Last year, the organization held the sold-out AI in Banking Conference, which featured sessions on responsible AI adoption, managing fraud in the age of AI, utilizing AI to create a personalized customer experience and other topics.

“Our goal is to help prepare our members for the future, and we will continue to include education surrounding AI as long as there is a need,” Affuso says.

This type of education is crucial because there is still a myriad of potential issues that AI can present, and that still require human involvement. “To responsibly adopt AI, you still need human oversight,” Affuso explains. “There have been reports of AI ‘hallucinations’ where the AI presents false or fabricated data as the truth, and you also need to ensure that the data being put into the system is valid; if you put false or unchecked data into the system, this is what it will report back out.”

Accounting

Much like in the banking industry, accounting is another field that is embracing AI as a tool to help automate repetitive tasks, such as data entry and invoice processing, and minimizing human errors. Included among its other capabilities are processing live data for immediate financial analysis, identifying trends to create more precise financial forecasts, and analyzing large datasets to flag anomalies and inconsistencies and improve risk management.

“AI has not only made the accounting industry more efficient, but it has helped spawn an environment where more strategy, analysis and growth can happen,” says Aiysha (AJ) Johnson, CEO and executive director at the New Jersey Society of Public Accountants (NJCPA). “CPAs and accountants, however, are consummate professionals and are cautious about any risks associated with AI implementation, as they are with any new tool. After all, they play such an important role in our society – whether it’s at the small business owner level or in the boardroom.”

Karolis Matulis, a partner at WilkinGuttenplan, agrees that the primary goal of using AI in the accounting industry is to improve efficiency, and it’s being used to better automate administrative tasks like data entry, invoice processing and transaction matching. “AI is becoming a tool that we can use to do the things that clients don’t necessarily value, like generating memos and documentation, as well as being able to conduct tax research much faster, which frees us up to sit down with clients and talk to them about their businesses and challenges they’re facing, or help them plan for the future,” he says. “It has the potential to make our industry even more personal because we can let the computers do the computer work and free up the humans to do the human work.”

Real Estate

Dominic M. Fittizzi, vice president, NAI James E. Hanson, agrees that as companies are embracing AI, it is important to take the time to educate their teams on how to use it properly and ethically. “Everyone’s anxious to start implementing this technology within their business, but you have to take the time to understand how to use it and teach it exactly what you’re looking for,” he explains, noting that it’s being utilized in the real estate industry for everything from scheduling to forecasting. “The old adage that ‘time is money’ still holds true, and people want results even faster than they used to … what used to take us 48 hours to prepare for a client can now take 48 minutes with AI.”

Security is another ongoing issue, as AI systems could unintentionally leak confidential data (e.g., if employees share sensitive company data with public AI tools). “It’s imperative that when adopting AI, companies come up with a strategic
implementation plan, including an AI policy that defines how and when AI can be used, which should be shared with all employees,” Affuso advises. “It’s important for businesses to understand all the implications of AI – both the positives and negatives – when deciding to adopt it.”

Conclusion

Looking ahead, the potential impact of AI on the job market remains to be seen, although there are valid concerns that it could replace some jobs entirely. “AI will certainly affect jobs. The question is: Will it be a negative or a positive impact? Similar to how electrification created substantial shifts in employment and industry, AI is likely to be similarly revolutionary,” Affuso says.

On the other hand, though some professionals may ultimately be phased out, the widespread adoption of AI also has the potential to create jobs and cause many other types of roles to evolve. “Automation and process improvement is nothing new in any line of business – folks are always looking for ways to get things done quicker. And there are going to be industries that experience some displacement,” Matulis says. “But many businesses may find that as they are able to accomplish more, they will be able to service additional clients and grow their businesses faster – and ultimately hire more employees along the way.”

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