Long journey, high expectations – First impressions of Las Vegas
This trip further validated our assumptions and brought a wealth of new ideas.
Las Vegas is far away. A 19.5-hour journey from our front door to the hotel room can drain even the most enthusiastic traveler. The much-discussed border control went smoothly thanks to MPC, and there were no signs of trouble elsewhere either. At Dallas airport, choosing the right direction on the terminal train is crucial—an extra 20 minutes nearly cost us our connecting flight.
Arriving at the event, the sight of 25,000 participants was impressive in itself. The keynote delivered a fairly predictable message: AI and agents are here to stay. What stood out, however, was the lineup of keynote guests, featuring Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella virtually and NVIDIA’s Jensen Huang live on stage. These are, after all, the world’s largest and third-largest companies by market value. It’s remarkable how far ServiceNow has come—from a small ITSM challenger I knew 15 years ago to playing in this league.
There are a huge number of ServiceNow partners. The Expo area was packed with them. One of the most memorable experiences was RapDev’s robot dogs scanning badges. A long conversation with them opened up a very different world of AI agents and their applications in the IT industry today. None of my questions or challenges made them back down from their view that companies the size of Netox and many Finnish SMEs can already achieve significant business benefits from agent-based AI.
Another interesting highlight was ServiceNow CRM and its vision, which challenges the traditional view of CRM as merely a sales tool. The new era of CRM strongly guides all customer interactions and the workflows behind them. Combined with AI agents, this opens up possibilities limited only by imagination.
Overall, Knowledge was a fantastic event. The city, the venue, the organization, the talks, the partners, and ServiceNow’s presence were all top-notch. The world is moving at a tremendous pace, and sometimes it feels like here in the far north, we either don’t see it or don’t believe in it. At Netox, we intend to be among the first to adopt ServiceNow’s new offerings. This trip further confirmed our assumptions and brought a host of new ideas. More on those soon!
Winners Do Things Differently – Courage Makes the Difference
It was inspiring to see and hear real-life case stories from bold global pioneers. These stories provided not only motivation but also a reality check: the time to accelerate is now, not next year.
The EXPO area offered engaging conversations with ServiceNow representatives and hands-on demos, such as various automated customer service processes.
We also attended talks by NVIDIA and Amadeus, where they shared how AI and CSM have been applied in different use cases. At the core, the challenges are similar everywhere. A key takeaway was that AI should be implemented one carefully selected piece at a time. The underlying data and processes must be in order, and the culture—meaning the people—must be on board.
What sets winners apart is their willingness and ability to do things differently. As ServiceNow CEO Bill McDermott, wearing sunglasses and a leather jacket, put it:
“If you always do what you always did, you always get what you always got.”
Confirmation of Direction: Netox Is on the Right Path
This was my second time in Las Vegas and at the Knowledge event—my first visit was in 2023. This year, the event delivered a clear core message: “Put AI to work for people” – AI should serve people, not the other way around. We were there to gain inspiration and direction for our own ServiceNow development, right from the front row at Knowledge 2025!
The event offered concrete examples of how AI is already being used across various industries. Particularly inspiring were the customer stories where AI had genuinely improved responsiveness and reduced manual workload.
We are currently beginning the development of a new ServiceNow platform, where AI is not just an add-on but integrated from the very start. Our goal is to leverage technologies such as GenAI, AI agents, AI Search, and virtual assistants as part of our service delivery – to streamline work, anticipate needs, and enhance the customer experience.
Knowledge 2025 confirmed that Netox is on the right path. For us, ServiceNow is not just a system, but a means to build smarter, more customer-centric, and scalable service delivery – together with our customers and partners.
