Thought Leadership: Is the future of everything Artificial Intelligence (AI)?

​AI continues to be a top trending topic because it is impacting everything. Our future may very well look like a science fiction movie, which can be rather “cool” or “scary,” depending on your take.

I have been writing a series of articles on the broad topic of AI. If you want an overview read my article - How Artificial Intelligence is changing how we live, how we do business and how we market.

How AI is changing work

Universal Basic Income

According to Elon Musk, Tesla and SpaceX founder, “we are headed toward Universal Basic Income (UBI), if AI takes over most human jobs.” The best way to approach AI according to Elon Musk is to be proactive and create regulations to manage AI.

Automation

Automation of work involves repetitive tasks that can easily be coded. Routine jobs can be performed efficiently by machines, such as autonomous self-driving cars, factory work, manual labour and more.

A recent McKinsey report found that 30 percent of “work activities could be automated by 2030 and up to 375 million workers worldwide could be affected by emerging technologies.”


Industries that are already being impacted by AI systems include finance management, insurance, architecture, security, law, accounting, administrative work, marketing, radiology, healthcare, manufacturing, supply chain and more.

AI and smarter phones

Google, Apple, Samsung, Huawei and other phone companies are constantly unveiling new features to make phones much smarter with enhanced mobile experiences.

AI systems are based on deep learning that analyses sensory patterns to create speech translation, image recognition and more.

AI chips in phones digests large amounts of data based on signals and algorithms. Your daily habits on your mobile phone creates a pattern of your mobile behaviour. AI can learn about your interests, behaviours, emotions and interpret this information to predict your future actions.

A positive example is the ability for your smart phone health app to sense any imbalance in your body and create alerts such as blood sugar level changes, blood pressure and more.

Phones are getting quite sophisticated with features such as image and face recognition. For example, Apple uses an AI algorithm as its Face ID unlocking feature. 

Innovation from technology titan Google

At the Google annual I/O, Sundar Pichai showcased some impressive AI based products and features. 

Here are some of the latest Google products

• Google Duplex is a smart upgrade to Google Assistant – Your human-sounding Google Assistant will be handling more tasks such as calling your favourite restaurant or hairdresser to make an appointment for you based on your schedule.

 

• Gmail will present you with options of sentences or phrases as you type. The Google Smart Compose can write your sentences for you with an Auto-Complete feature.

 

• Google Maps gets more social – Google Maps will have a personalised feature with a “For You” tab that will recommend restaurants based on your taste and location. The feature will also help with social events such as helping you organise your dinner party.

 

• Google Wellbeing – Google has created an “app timer” that will tell you how much time you have been spending on your smart phone.

 

• Google Photos has innovative features such as editing, turning a photo of a document into a pdf file and more.

 

• Google Lens will allow you to take a picture of a text and copy-paste it anywhere. Also, if you like to take notes you can conveniently send them via text.

 
To learn more about upcoming Google products watch the Google I/O presentation.

How AI is changing business and marketing

AI is transforming how businesses work and interact with customers. Leveraging technology is challenging for some businesses who are behind in adapting new tools for growth.

According to Gartner digital business is about “harnessing the opportunities of innovative new technologies to create new business opportunities, such as new products and services, or ways of operating the business.”

Marketing is moving fast. Competing brands and businesses are strategically leveraging new tools to not only stay ahead but also be the leaders in their industries.

Here are key marketing highlights

According to Salesforce, Marketers are using AI to gain valuable insights on customers, automating tasks and managing their workflows. Nearly half (51%) of marketers are already using AI, and an additional 27% are expected to incorporate AI by 2019. -- Salesforce.

• Data generation – Gathering insights from data-rich media such as voice and video is now possible.  This is a welcome development for marketers as it provides more exciting options on data gathering.

 

• Hyper-personalisation – AI is helping businesses to create personalised products and services based on individual preferences. Algorithms are very efficient in determining likes and tastes of customers. In the retail industry brands such as Nike and Acustom Apparel are making Custom fitted products made-to-order from anywhere in the world.

 

• Advertising – With vast amounts of big data available, advertising is becoming increasingly targeted based on customer behaviour patterns. This is enabling marketers to gather information and create tailored ads based on personal context.

 

• Recommendation engines generate information on products being searched and then creates relevant product suggestions. A good example is Amazon’s platform that identifies a target audience for specific products and then lists them on their customer’s dashboard.

 

• Big data is allowing businesses to gather vast amounts of information on organisational performance and customer preferences. Data analytics provides an opportunity for businesses to make decisions quickly and respond to customers in real-time.

The takeaway

Artificial Intelligence is a rapidly evolving industry with billions of dollars being invested by technology titans such as Google DeepMind, Facebook AI Research, Apple, IBM Watson, Baidu, and Amazon.

Smart businesses and marketers will need to stay ahead of disruption by being innovative, creative and strategic in order to be competitive.

Advances in AI has created opportunities for businesses to be more efficient and produce target specific services. Leading companies are leveraging technology for competitive advantage.

Get in touch with me if you are interested in learning about strategic marketing and how to take your brand forward.

“This, then, was the religion that I was raised with: veneration for human creativity and the power of ideas.” ― Ray Kurzweil, The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology

“There is no reason and no way that a human mind can keep up with an artificial intelligence machine by 2035.” —Gray Scott