Artificial Intelligence (or AI as it’s commonly known) has long been the stuff of movies but the reality is that AI’s are already part of our daily lives. No, I don’t mean the robotic type of Artificial Intelligence, I’m talking about the smartphone type of AI. If you have an Apple iPhone, chances are you’re probably familiar with Siri. Yep - that's an AI right there and it’s been around since 2010. Siri’s AI checks basic information for you, organises your calendar, searches the internet and does a lot of other basic things for you like placing a call by using voice recognition technology. It's your basic personal assistant so to speak.
Samsung, on the other hand, has Bixby. If your Samsung phone is one of the latest ones, like Galaxy S8, Galaxy Note 8 or Galaxy S9, then you certainly have this AI in your phone. Unlike Siri, Bixby can not only perform actions through your voice command but can also perform hands-free functions, such as opening an application or setting an alarm clock. Bixby also has a version where users can learn details about objects and locations, find out how to purchase items they see in the real world, and translate languages, among many other tasks. Pretty cool, huh?
And if you don't have an iPhone or Samsung device, whatever smartphone you have right now probably has a Google Assistant. You know, the one who follows your voice command once you say "Hey Google!". Have you tried it already? "Hey, Google! Find me the best restaurant around!" That's right! It's an AI too!
But there is actually more to it than meets the eye. A lot of industries these days use state-of-the-art technologies including Artificial Intelligence. It enables businesses to operate more efficiently and effectively. As technologies keep evolving, more and more organisations are finding ways to improve their performance with more powerful and sophisticated methods to streamline their processes. That’s where AI’s come in. Powerful AI’s are applications that can effortlessly create decisions without any human inputs, resolve multiple problems all at once and function like humans do, only at a much faster pace.
Here are some industries that use Artificial Intelligence:
Retail - This is on top of my list. Ever heard of Amazon’s Alexa? It is the AI that shoppers primarily use for shopping on Amazon, it can support voice-activated ordering and package tracking. It's handsfree online shopping and all you need is to talk to it, and it will follow whatever command you say. Many retailers now are also looking into using augmented and virtual reality so that their shoppers can first have an immersive experience of the product they are planning to buy.
Banks and financial institutions - How many times have you received an email if you’ve done some extraordinary transactions on your bank account, let's say, withdrawing an unusually large amount? Yep - that's another AI protecting your account for you and making sure that it was you. And if it's not you, what's your first instinct? To call the bank's customer service, right? If so, chances are, you might have spoken to an AI bot.
Digital Marketing - Did you know that without AI’s, the online ad industry would fail as it would show random ads to users with no connection to their preferences whatsoever? That’s because AI’s not only track user statistics, they also serve as ads based on those statistics. See the connection now? How many times do you see ads that are relevant to you while you’re browsing in social media or watching videos or streaming? Those are AI’s that are responsible for presenting that information to you.
Car manufacturing - Soon to hit the streets are self-driving cars. Of course, you will still be there for legal reasons (not much point in having a self-driving car if there isn’t someone in it!) but imagine the convenience of having those long drives without you having to drive yourself? Because the AI will do it for you! Exciting, isn't it? Don't worry, they know exactly what they are doing because all of these cars are connected and everything that your car learns is shared across all vehicles. That means, if you had to take an unanticipated hard-left on a cross-road, all these AI operated cars will know how to maneuver that turn after they are updated. Shades of The Borg here!
These are actually just a few industries that use Artificial Intelligence in their business. There are so many more out there. And why am I writing about it? Because these companies publish articles about it. They know that it matters that their consumers know that they use advanced technology. So - if you have a business that uses AI’s, machine learning, virtual reality, augmented reality, or whatever modern day technology it is that you are using, and you want to get the word out - I can write it for you. Just give me (Pauline) a call on 0400 514579 or drop me an email to pauline@worddynamics.com.au and let’s talk about getting you some more online visibility.