Artificial intelligence has come a long way in a relatively short space of time. From the early Church-Turing thesis on computable functions to John McCarthy coining the term and establishing the first AI research workshop at Dartmouth College in 1956, the technology has made huge strides. No longer the realm of Hollywood blockbusters, AI is now something we all carry around in our pockets and cross paths with in everyday life.
AI is also filtering into the business world, thanks to big data, advanced analytics and machine learning promising new, efficient ways of working and competitive gains to enable growth. You might view AI as the sole pursuit of big tech companies, or something to tackle tomorrow, but dismissing it outright is akin to shrugging off business basics like the internet or email as a valued resource.
But what can AI actually do for your business? Dr Michael Wu, chief AI strategist at PROS, believes this is “the wrong question to ask”. Instead, he believes that question needs to be reframed to consider bringing AI into a larger digital strategy.
“AI can pretty much do anything a human can do providing that you can fully digitise the process. If you can fully digitise the process you will have the data to train the AI to mimic what we do,” said Wu. “The real question that a company should ask is ‘what can you digitise’? This is another argument why you should digitally transform your business, because then you will have the digital data to train your artificial intelligence.”
With the right data in place, AI has the ability to integrate into everything from your cybersecurity setup to ecommerce platforms. Think detecting behavioral anomalies and responding rapidly to threats, or personalising content to increase an online store’s conversion rate.
Businesses have been harnessing the power of technology for decades, and AI represents the next evolutionary step. Implement it correctly and it can interpret data and draw out valuable insight. Even if you are new to AI, it’s worth researching and considering the possible impact it could have in unlocking your organisation’s potential.
To learn more about how AI research is changing the game for businesses, register now for the IT Pro Live webinar taking place on Thursday 25 June. PROS’ Dr Michael Wu will join IT Pro’s Adam Shepherd to discuss topics including:
- Why AI is so disruptive
- What are the different types of AI?
- What can AI do for our businesses?
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