JISARA

Abstract: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) often face significant barriers when adopting artificial intelligence (AI), including concerns related to cost, ease of use, and accessibility. This project introduces a web-based prototype designed to overcome these concerns by providing a secure, low-cost, and user-friendly platform for deploying AI tools such as sales forecasting and customizable chatbots. Following design science research methodology, the platform’s initial features, layout, and included tools were informed by potential users, which identified the most desired AI functionalities and common adoption concerns among SMEs. To evaluate the AI adoption assistance platform, a demonstration and testing iteration was conducted with owners and employees of SMEs and university students in North Carolina, which led to insights on several design meta-requirements. The SME participants expressed strong interest in using the platform regularly and emphasized the importance of data privacy, intuitive design, and flexible pricing; the student evaluators provided additional insight into navigation and interface clarity, identifying areas for refinement such as clearer user feedback, improved discoverability of tools, and consistent formatting. Future work includes expanding the chatbot functionality, refining the onboarding experience, and improving design consistency, followed by gathering additional user feedback.

Download this article: JISARA - V19 N1 Page 46.pdf

Recommended Citation: Alvarez, B., Fitz, L.R., Gebauer, J., Shi, Y., (2026). Designing An Artificial Intelligence Adoption Assistance Platform for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Identifying Opportunities and Concerns. Journal of Information Systems Applied Research and Analytics 19(1) pp 46-63. https://doi.org/10.62273/ZQPS7795