How is AI already helping companies that use K2?

Let’s put the question on the table: What role does artificial intelligence (AI) play in ERP systems today? And how do we see it at K2 – the largest independent Czech developer of ERP systems and business software?

The truth is, it is a constant search for the right balance between two worlds, both equally important to us. The first is built on strong relationships – relationships we have developed with our partners over more than three decades. We have grown because successful people had a strong vision, and our system helped them make the right, measurable decisions every day.

Meeting face to face has always mattered to us, and it always will. After all, there is probably no other ERP developer on the Czech market that organises major conferences for hundreds of people every year – whether it is the autumn K2 STATUS for business owners and decision-makers or the spring K2 idea factory for developers and IT administrators – travels around the country with a dedicated tour for accountants, and builds a culture in which our consultants often spend more time at our customers’ companies than in our own offices.

But there is another world as well. The world of successful companies that shifts into a higher gear every year, where Czech businesses compete for their place in the market against global players. We need to remain relevant and successful in this world too. And without artificial intelligence – both criticised and celebrated – that is becoming increasingly difficult.

The most important thing: protecting your data

Our AI story began years ago. Perhaps at a time when AI was not yet a fashionable buzzword but was hidden within related topics such as cloud computing, automation, digitalisation, cybersecurity and Industry 4.0. Even then, we were discussing with business owners and key managers how to make processes more efficient and how to replace routine tasks with more creative work.

We also decided early on that none of these changes could be allowed to compromise your data. We live in a world of constant cybersecurity risks. Thanks in part to having our own hardware division, we have been able to help several companies when ransomware, phishing or other sophisticated attacks brought their operations to a standstill and threatened their most sensitive business data.

That is why we know AI needs clear boundaries – boundaries within which it remains a useful tool rather than becoming a risk. Protecting you is our number one priority. We develop our AI solutions ourselves, and our language models always run exclusively on our own infrastructure. This gives you the confidence that none of your internal data will end up in public AI services.

Only then do we consider which tasks make sense to entrust to artificial intelligence – so that AI delivers genuine added value for you and represents a meaningful investment in development for us. In some areas, we have already come a long way. Others are still ahead of us.

What already runs on AI in K2 today?

• Document data extraction: Simply upload an invoice or receipt to the system. K2 reads both the header and individual line items, matches them with your product records and code lists, and creates the document directly in the workflow. Your employees no longer have to retype the data – they simply check it. Fewer transcription errors and a significant amount of time saved.
• A virtual assistant directly in the system: We call her K2 Lisa, and she certainly is not intended to replace our developers or consultants. But she can provide immediate assistance. Because she knows the entire K2 documentation as well as recordings of all our webinars, she can tell users how to perform a specific task in the system. Instead of searching through help pages or calling the hotline, they can simply ask a question in natural language.
• Smart suggestions: AI Data Suggestion means that all you need to do is click in a search field and K2 will suggest the most likely value based on historical data and context. One click and the field is filled in – faster and with fewer errors.
• Semantic search in e-commerce: The search engine understands the intent behind a query, not just its keywords. Customers can describe what they need in natural language and receive relevant product results.

What does the new version of K2 bring?

Quite a lot. AI is also helping us, as developers, work faster. This means we can introduce even more new functionality with every new version.

• Fast answers to everyday questions: Lisa will connect to your ERP data. Ask in natural language which invoices are overdue or what yesterday’s store turnover was, and you will receive an answer within seconds – without clicking through modules or building a report.
• Customer search: Lisa will also begin to interact directly with the K2 user interface. With a single instruction, she will find a customer, apply a filter or create a chart. In e-commerce, the search engine will automatically derive specific product parameters from a query and filter products accordingly.

And that is far from the end of the story. We are working on voice control for Lisa, as well as further improvements to document management in DMS. The goal is to let you simply ask questions about information contained across contracts, quotations and projects instead of having to search through them manually.

So, what does it all add up to?

We will remain the K2 system you know – a system where strong relationships and mutual understanding continue to matter enormously. At the same time, we are investing heavily in AI and accelerating its development. We are giving our developers the freedom to keep bringing new functionality to K2 – functionality that helps your company remain competitive in an ever-changing world.

We develop AI securely and professionally, while keeping your business data protected.