Agentic AI in manufacturing marks the end of Industry 4.0

The Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0) has been happening for more than a decade—a long-anticipated reimagining of manufacturing.

Agentic AI in manufacturing, in my opinion, will supersede Industry 4.0 in terms of impact and transformation. Why? AI agents can constantly monitor, manage, and make decisions autonomously, unlocking game-changing productivity. Using agentic AI as a nerve centre, manufacturing leaders can change their businesses in ways which weren’t possible before.

Let’s examine the opportunities for manufacturers, based on discussions at the recent Hannover Messe event.

The agentic AI opportunity for manufacturing

We’re seeing a global appetite for AI adoption across all industries—especially in manufacturing. At Hannover Messe, I explained how agentic AI can transform manufacturing processes to optimise efficiency.

If you imagine a manufacturing plant, there can be hundreds of thousands of sensors measuring different points in the production workflow. Humans are currently responsible for monitoring the data and adjusting controls as necessary—but AI agents can do this in real-time, reducing the operational workload for employees.

For example, an AI agent can analyse machine temperature and vibration data to detect anomalies, order spare parts, and schedule predictive maintenance. Another use case is in quality control, where an AI agent can analyse images from the assembly line to detect defects and trigger the recall of a faulty product before distribution.

Agentic AI can also create a digital twin of a manufacturing process, making it possible to model changes to distribution without affecting customers.

For the first time, manufacturers must consider how they will manage digital employees alongside physical employees—as well as understanding how to augment decision-making processes with AI agents.

Businesses can digitise the knowledge employees build through experience and use it to train AI agents. This makes workforce expertise accessible across the organisation, helping speed up decision-making and make time available for experienced employees to focus on higher-value work.

Manufacturers lead the AI Pacesetters

According to the ServiceNow Enterprise AI Maturity Index 2024, manufacturing has the second-highest industry score for AI maturity, after technology, with an average of 45%.

Based on our research, a large portion of manufacturers are AI Pacesetters—companies which are more likely to say they’re transforming and innovating with AI. What sets AI Pacesetters apart? They have total C-suite engagement and commitment to AI—it’s a boardroom-level topic with a CEO sponsor.

The Enterprise AI Maturity Index research found Pacesetters are also more likely than others to acknowledge workforce AI governance concerns, such as the risks associated with data security (66%), compliance (61%), and intellectual property violations (58%).

AI governance goes beyond what’s traditionally called IT governance. It spans departments and business functions, ranging from finance to legal and other areas.

To address the size of this governance challenge, manufacturers need to consider the education opportunity for all employees. By training employees in agentic AI’s capabilities, limitations, and best practices for responsible implementation, they can mitigate AI governance risks.

With the appropriate guardrails and training procedures for agentic AI, manufacturers stand to reengineer entire processes and deliver greater productivity.

Find out how ServiceNow can help you put AI to work in manufacturing.