Artificial intelligence and machine learning

AI & machine learning

2018 could be seen as the year of innovation for technology, with AI becoming more popular as the year progresses. Some artificial intelligence professionals believe that 2018 will see artificial intelligence and machine learning being built into more consumer products, such as refrigerators and thermostats to represent the fastest and most widespread adoption of AI technologies, while others believe that it will become more prominent in customer service.

The hype will die down – but real action will take its place

There was plenty of hype around artificial intelligence last year, even some unique myths making the rounds about what AI could mean for workers. This year, we’re seeing way less of that hype as more and more functional and useful applications are seen.

Instead, we’re seeing real progress made towards some of the dreams and hypotheses put forward about what artificial intelligence and machine learning can really achieve. Investment in AI projects is already increasing, especially investment in machine learning.

Robots will change this year

We’ve had a slew of children’s robots using AI technology, from STEM education toys to programmable Stormtrooper robots (probably not only enjoyed by children) with facial recognition and voice command capabilities.

This year, however, we may see the creation of robots more geared towards adults. These robots could include home helpers, such as refrigerators that can tell us the freshness of our produce. The robots that are offered to adults will differ drastically to those offered to children in that their capabilities will be more sophisticated with more interesting functionalities. These programmable robots will appeal to a larger market and allow for personalizable experiences.

Our interactions with AI and machine learning will shift more towards voice

With the introduction of Echo and Alexa from Amazon, conversational interaction with artificial intelligence and machine learning will become more commonplace. Due to the machine learning capabilities of AI, computers have become more adept at understanding us.

NLP (natural language processing) algorithms are constantly evolving and learning how to ‘understand’ us and are now ‘speaking’ to us in a manner that we understand. Things are only going to get better from here onwards and we may see robots and other AI engines with which we are able to converse like other humans, within limits of course. Voice commands are definitely set to become common in business and office settings.

AI content creation

The key to creating more personalized content and authentic customer-brand relationships lies in using artificial intelligence and machine learning. It's able to make the customer journey and the content delivered to customers more customized than marketers and content creators ever thought possible.

Companies are already using AI to create their email marketing and SMS marketing content, meaning that there is no reason why AI engines could not create long-form content such as blogs posts or articles. Some news platforms are using AI engines to help them to detect newsworthy events on social media networks and rate the likelihood that they are true. This allows news platforms to report news that is relevant and trustworthy, without human error or emotion.

AI will become more involved in healthcare

AI technology is fast infiltrating the health and medical fields. The encroachment of artificial intelligence and machine learning into healthcare doesn’t mean that we’ll be greeted by a robot in the doctor’s rooms, but rather that AI can be used for more accurate diagnosing of illnesses and spotting warning signs by using medical records, images, and even the doctor’s handwriting.

In the UK there are care robots in development as part of a partnership between the EU and the Japanese Government. These robots are aimed at people who need care when suffering from disability and disease. These so-called ‘Pepper’ robots help care workers by preventing incorrect medication being given to patients and connecting to smart appliances for ease of use and contacting loved ones and health professionals on behalf of the person in their care.

AI personal assistants are becoming smarter by the day

Personal assistant engines which utilize AI continue to become smarter as they begin to understand and learn more about our daily routines. You may have noticed this with apps such as Google Maps offering location history options which allow you to view where you’ve been and set certain places as ‘Home’ or ‘Work’.

This year could see the innovation of an AI personal assistant which understands things such as how we like to prepare dinner or what meals we order frequently on apps, allowing them to order groceries based on this data. These personal assistants also use machine learning and algorithms to predict our needs and make decisions based on this data and understanding.

The future is bright

Artificial intelligence and machine learning have a bright future, with innovations coming out on a regular basis. We may see doctors and healthcare professionals embracing AI more, leading to more efficient and accurate diagnoses. Content creation will become a lot easier for marketers too. Read on to find out more about how artificial intelligence can help your business.