Smarter tools, broader impact: Lenovo lays out inclusive vision

At DreamWorks Animation, Lenovo’s cutting-edge technology is leveraged to bring artists’ imaginations to the big screen. Behind each frame lies a fusion of artistic vision and technological precision, where powerful workstations and intelligent infrastructure enable animators to turn complex ideas into rich, cinematic worlds.

“Technology is your paintbrush,” said Kate Swanborg, DreamWorks Animation SVP for technology communications and strategic alliances, during a keynote at Lenovo Accelerate 2025 in Johannesburg recently. “Technology becomes every lever you can move, every knob you can twist – to become more effective, efficient, and productive.”

The event showcased a vision for smarter technology for all, through engaging panels, industry insights, and transformative innovation across AI, infrastructure, and digital experiences.

Swanborg used a scene from The Wild Robot to illustrate the scale of the studio’s work, saying that the creation of a single gushing waterfall took seven months and the combined effort of countless artists and engineers. A 90-minute DreamWorks film contains about 130,000 frames, each built from thousands of digital elements, requiring about 300-million computational rendering hours and over 500-million digital files.

“DreamWorks Animation is a digital manufacturer,” said Swanborg. “We make data. We have to have the confidence that we can finish the movie we start. When you work on projects that take four years to come to fruition, you have to know that your infrastructure and your technological strategy will be sound for that entire time.”

While DreamWorks shows what advanced tools can achieve, Lenovo’s ‘smarter AI for all’ vision aims to make that power accessible to businesses of every size.

Yugen Naidoo, general manager of Lenovo Southern Africa, told Gadget: “I spoke about democratising AI, and the technology adoption curve shows that when it reaches the mainstream, it becomes more affordable because of scale and market dynamics.

“With the products that we bring to market, we want to make them accessible to everyone, not just to a certain bracket of corporates and consumers. Right now, in South Africa, has it taken off to the level that we needed to? It’s getting there. We know about the economic and disposable income challenges.”

Naidoo said Lenovo chose to adopt a grassroots approach, taking its technology to various industries and locations. The focus, he said, is on helping children learn by showing them how the products work, how to code, and how to apply the technology to robotics, for example. 

“These kids never had access to this technology. Yes, it’s only for a few days, but now they’ll be inquisitive and start challenging the status quo – and that’s what I want to see. We realised we also need to reach the educators. Before we position our product, we have to ask: do they understand what it can actually do?

“These are the people we need to educate, because the higher their intelligence on technology, the more educated our kids get, the better society gets – and that’s how we build a thriving economy.”

From desktop to data centre

Swanborg said DreamWorks equips its artists with Lenovo workstations to ensure creative ideas can be captured the moment inspiration strikes. When the pandemic made on-site work impossible, the studio adapted to remote production successfully – but the team missed the spontaneous creativity and close collaboration that came with being together.

As restrictions eased, some artists preferred the comfort of working from home. However, Swanborg said, returning to the studio became far more enticing as powerful Lenovo workstations were installed at every desk – a strong incentive that helped reignite in-person collaboration.

While Lenovo workstations are vital on the desktop, DreamWorks’ partnership with the company began in the data centre. More recently, the studio replaced 210 air-cooled servers with 72 Lenovo Neptune servers – reducing power consumption and cooling requirements while significantly increasing computing power. Lenovo supports sustainable practices and is committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

Embracing creative and technological change

Swanborg said DreamWorks Animation does not use AI to generate any images, as that work is done by brilliant artists. However, the studio is exploring AI to improve backend efficiency. 

For Lenovo, that transformation is already well underway – particularly in how businesses manage infrastructure, people, and devices. Thibault Dousson, director of the Services and Solutions Group at Lenovo META, told Gadget that while many companies are still unsure how to apply AI, the pressure to “do more with less” is accelerating its adoption.

“Many are trying to have AI somehow in the businesses,” he said. “Many businesses want to bring AI into their operations, even if they’re not entirely sure why or how. They’re under pressure to improve efficiency while working within tight budget constraints.”

To help meet that challenge, Lenovo has developed platforms like Care of One, an AI-powered system designed to automate support across departments such as HR, IT, and finance. 

“You’re sitting in Cape Town, you receive a message from an LLM, not the IT department. The platform says, ‘Your laptop needs to be retired. Are you still at this address?’ It already knows where you are and what setup you need. You get the new device, type in your password, and everything is configured – software, security, everything. That used to take days.”

Dousson said AI can contribute to sustainability by improving operational efficiency – for example, by helping businesses manage their assets more effectively or extend their lifespan. 

“If AI helps you use less equipment to do the same task, you’re increasing the lifecycle of the product.”

Offering a different view on how AI is often labelled, Dousson said: “I wouldn’t call it disruptive. AI is going to make us stronger, more agile, more sustainable – just a little bit better at what we do. I’d rather say that it’s going to go hand in hand with us being better, delivering better services, better products, and hopefully working a little bit less and focusing on the things we care about, like families or art.”

Future-ready with TruScale

DreamWorks recently entered a TruScale agreement with Lenovo. This flexible, subscription-based model allows businesses to access hardware, infrastructure, software, solutions and services on demand. Instead of large upfront investments, companies can scale their technology usage with predictable, pay-as-you-go pricing.

By delivering its full IT portfolio as a service, Lenovo helps organisations stay agile, manage costs, and align technology with both immediate needs and long-term goals. TruScale is not yet available in South Africa due to Lenovo’s offshore operations, but Lenovo Financial Services offer a flexible alternative for local businesses.

*Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and writer for Gadget.co.za. Follow him on Bluesky at @jas2bann.