This report analyses the dynamics of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Marketplaces, one of the key vendor types identified in Transforma Insights’ AI Market Framework. It includes discussion of their many stakeholders such as developers, data owners, and regulators who converge to coordinate their developments and trade AI models and services with end users. Other dynamics include ensuring the privacy and security of the data, end users who require help with technical expertise to assess model quality, ongoing maintenance requirements for products developed, and the proprietary nature of many of the solutions created.
The types of marketplaces and the vendors associated with them are segmented into generalist and specialist types and reviewed for their capabilities, including infrastructure, Machine Learning (ML) models, data storage, computing resources, and others. We also draw attention to how marketplace platforms can promote standards, are challenged by regulatory complexities, and advance AI solutions across industry sectors.
Marketplaces are digital spaces that connect AI vendors and adopters, including AI service developers, vendors of pre-trained AI models and enterprises and other end users, who can then coordinate the exchange of services, payments, and AI solutions.
Marketplaces are platforms and can be open, single-master, or consortium-driven. Single-master and consortium-driven marketplaces are curated, in the former case by a single vendor (for example, AWS) and in the latter case, by a group in a consortium. Curated marketplaces often cater for a more specific user base (including vendors and products) and focus on hosting AI solutions that match that focus.
