The first time you scroll Facebook in the morning, you habitually run into targeted advertisements. Back in your mind, you recall browsing similar products the previous night.
Just after you take your breakfast, a push notification from an eCommerce site pops up on your screen. Well, you wonder how they get to know exactly what you need!
On your way to your workplace, a geo-targeted notification beeps on your handset. Looking at your screen, you realize that you are just passing by your favorite bakery.
Knowingly or unknowingly, we have embraced artificial intelligence in our daily chores. AI is the future, and we are gradually transcending into a futuristic way of living. Think of any industry, you can’t deny the influence of AI. Right from education to banking and manufacturing to healthcare, AI has been changing the world!
Understanding AI basics: How does AI work?
AI is a specialized discipline of computer science that develops smart machines capable of carrying out tasks that previously required human intelligence. Building an intelligent system involves reverse-engineering the traits and capabilities of humans in different machines. Thanks to computational progress, AI has already surpassed human capabilities.
Artificial intelligence can be regarded as an interdisciplinary science having multiple approaches. With the inception of deep learning, neural networks, and machine learning, AI has revolutionized almost every sector.
AI empowers machines to model human capabilities and even produce improved versions to replicate their capabilities. You must already be familiar with Alexa or Siri, or self-driving cars that might be dominating the next-generation automotive industry.
The world has been embracing AI for the good, given that artificial intelligence eases up lifestyles and solves problems.
What tasks can AI systems perform?
AI systems are designed to carry out tasks that are related to the cognitive functions of humans. For instance, smart systems can identify patterns or interpret speech. AI systems are trained to do their respective tasks by processing huge volumes of data. These systems are capable of making independent decisions by examining data patterns.
The learning process of AI systems is supervised by humans. While training AIs, bad decisions are discouraged, while good ones are encouraged. Thus, they learn to identify the trend and reinforce the same while making independent decisions.
AI statistics that define the potential of intelligent systems
Let’s take a look at these figures that tell tons about the massive potential that AI holds.
- By 2030, the global AI market will exceed $1.5 trillion.
- As much as 83% of businesses consider using AI in their strategy.
- The last five years witnessed a 300% increment in the number of companies using AI.
- 80% of employees acknowledge that AI leverages their productivity.
- In 2020, the global AI market was a $296.7 billion industry. In 2023, it is poised to be a massive $500 billion industry.
Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/694638/worldwide-cognitive-and-artificial-intelligence-revenues/
The graph reveals the growth of AI market revenue across the world between 2020 and 2023.
What are the advantages of using AI?
Every industry is facing a win-win situation as they strive to make the most of artificial intelligence. Here’s how you can take advantage of AI in your respective profession or industry.
- AI has already proven its competence in carrying out routine or mundane tasks. Automation isn’t the future, it’s already happening!
- Smart systems significantly boost productivity by reducing the time necessary to carry out a task.
- AI fosters multitasking and minimizes the load of existing resources.
- Unlike humans, AI doesn’t need rest. So, organizations don’t suffer downtime or delays.
- AI facilitates faster decision-making and simplifies the process through prior training.
What are the different forms of AI?
AI has evolved significantly over the decades and comes in many forms. You might come across the terms machine learning, deep learning, and LLM while exploring AI. Machine learning is a subcategory of AI, while deep learning is a kind of ML.
Let’s take a look at the different forms of AI in brief.
- Machine learning
A machine learning algorithm is data-fed by computing systems. The process involves statistical techniques that help the system learn skills and get progressively better at work. ML algorithms largely depend on historical information to predict the output. Machine learning includes both supervised and unsupervised learning. These algorithms learn from their mistakes and get better over time.
Common applications of ML in AI include speech recognition, image recognition (used by Facebook), and fraud detection.
- Deep learning
Deep learning is a category of ML that uses a neural network architecture to run its inputs. There are several hidden layers in the neural networks. The data gets processed through these networks, which enables the system to learn the tasks ‘deeply’ for delivering the best results.
Since deep learning technology is capable of identifying complex patterns of data using AI, it finds its application in NLP, image recognition, and speech recognition.
- Large language models
A large language model is one of the popular types of AI. They require massive volumes of data to be trained and are unsupervised ML. Thus, they can replicate human actions while performing tasks. These models are fed through websites, books, and articles.
LLMs, during their learning mechanism, process billions of phrases and words to master associations and patterns between them. Thus, they can respond to prompts with human-like answers. GPT 3.5 and GPT 4 are some of the most popular examples of LLMs.
Practical applications of AI in daily lives
Now, let’s take a look at how AI has been changing our lifestyles.
- Smart assistants
Personal assistants like Cortana, Alexa, and Siri have been altering our lifestyles. Using voice-assisted commands, you can control lights and electronic gadgets in your home, play music, or set reminders. Even a voice command can help you search for online information to simplify your lifestyle.
Smart assistants work on natural language processing. These systems quickly learn the preferences of their users to improve their experience. Over time, they come up with better suggestions and offer customized responses.
- Google Maps
Think of finding a location inside or outside your city, food or online delivery, or finding an app cab. Google Maps has been one of the most extensively used AI tools that most of you have on your smartphones. In cities, traffic control departments use GPS to monitor traffic. Besides, you can curtail travel guide time by finding the fastest route between two places using Google Maps.
- Wearables
For how long have you been using smart watches or similar wearables? These gadgets have revolutionized the healthcare industry. Using deep learning, smart devices are capable of evaluating the health conditions of the user. Besides, in hospitals, smart wearables are used to monitor blood sugar levels, heart rate, and blood pressure.
Wearables are also capable of retrieving patterns from the prior medical record of patients. Thanks to the power of analytics, they can predict future health conditions. Thus, medical professionals can take the necessary countermeasures and address the health conditions of their patients.
- Self-driving cars
Although self-driving cars are in the experimental stage, they have made their way from fiction books to reality. By incorporating deep learning, companies like Tesla are transforming concepts into reality. Smart mechanisms enable these cars to detect objects close to them, determine how far they are from other vehicles, and understand traffic signals.
- Video and image recognition
Sophisticated AI programs are capable of recognizing videos and images. Platforms like Facebook have already incorporated these features. Image and video recognition involve the use of machine learning that organizes unstructured data from different sources.
- Chatbots
AI chatbots have been around for a decade or so. These smart tools are trained to interact with people. Advanced AI chatbots can carry out human-like conversations. Some of the latest systems have been trained to mimic concern and empathy. Businesses from different verticals in the industry have been using AI-powered chatbots to engage customers.
Use cases of AI in different industries
Now, let’s explore how AI is revolutionizing different industries across the globe.
- Ecommerce and retail
The online retail space is witnessing large-scale competition over the globe. The use of artificial intelligence in eCommerce and retail is evident among merchants as well as end-users. Top eCommerce platforms like Ubuy India have been using smart tools to track consumer behavior. Besides, smart analytics tools enable eCommerce merchants to find products that specific customers are likely to purchase and recommend the same. Accordingly, they align their customer relationship and marketing strategies to cater to the specific requirements of their customers.
Some eCommerce platforms also use AI-powered chatbots to ensure 24/7 support. This delivers a seamless customer experience. Smart tools are also trained to furnish relevant answers to customer’s queries and assist them in finding customized products.
- Financial and banking services
Over the world, the financial, insurance, and banking industry have transformed significantly with the inception of AI tools. Intelligent AI robots are replacing human agents in customer care departments. Besides, financial organizations are counting on automated tools for loan processing.
In the investment domain, the role of robo-financial advisors is crucial. These tools scan through massive volumes of data in seconds. Accordingly, they recommend the right decisions for investments to clients. These AI-powered tools are capable of evaluating your emails, social media activity, and online behavior. In the process, they identify the companies and sectors aligned with your objectives and priorities.
In the insurance sector, AI bots are improving customer experience by recommending customized products and plans. AI-backed tools have also slashed the time necessary for processing claims.
Fraud detection is yet another practical application of AI in the financial sector. Currently, MasterCard is using an intelligent decision-making technology for evaluating data points and identifying fraudulent transactions.
- Healthcare
The global AI market focusing on the healthcare domain is likely to jump to $22.4 billion in 2023 from $15.4 billion in 2022.
AI has revolutionized global healthcare for the good. Leading companies developing sophisticated AI tools have already come up with intelligent applications offering an extensive plethora of healthcare services. Smart analytics tools are capable of mining tons of data to identify patterns and diagnose symptoms with greater accuracy. Medical imaging, drug discovery, medication management, and robotic surgery are some of the prime applications of artificial intelligence in the healthcare domain.
In this context, it’s worth mentioning the relevance of ML and computer vision in diagnosing conditions like skin cancer. Medical practitioners are using such technologies during complex surgeries as well. For instance, AI ensures that surgeons carry out all the necessary steps accurately while an operation is going on.
Besides, precision medicine algorithms deserve special mention in the healthcare context. The health outcomes of a patient or their response to a particular treatment procedure vary on the basis of several aspects like their genetics and lifestyle. For human doctors, it’s challenging to track these aspects. Thanks to AI, smart tools are capable of identifying the best treatment processes for patients by analyzing their treatment histories and massive volumes of data. Besides, they alert doctors about emerging health conditions in patients.
Source: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/artificial-intelligence-ai-healthcare
The report shows that the AI market in the US healthcare sector is likely to undergo a 36.1% growth between 2023 and 2030.
- Food tech and food processing
In the food processing and food tech industry, AI has already made a visible difference. Food tech companies like Hi Arya are coming up with robots capable of preparing tea. Integrating IoT and AI capabilities, smart tea makers also enable users to prepare their own recipes. In this system, you need to use a mobile app or web interface to order your cup of tea. The machine would prepare the tea while you can watch it being prepared through the live-feed features.
AI is also found extensive use in the industrial food processing sector. You might come across a company, Tomra Systems ASA, which has come up with food sorting tools backed by AI. It targets peeled potatoes, French fries, and the ground meat market. The sophisticated food processor enables companies to automate tasks related to food analysis. This includes measuring the shape, size, and color. Besides, these tools can evaluate the nutrient content in meat.
In the agricultural sector, too, AI helps in evaluating the impact of variables like heat, salinity, sunlight, UV rays, basil, and water. With this data, it’s possible to develop strategies to grow the desired quality of crops.
End Note
Think of any sector, and you will find AI fine-tuning operations or enhancing customer experience. Ranging from logistics and transportation to travel and real estate to gaming, artificial intelligence is making a visible difference in our lives.
Data-trained models are here to make our lifestyles smarter. As we stride towards a futuristic lifestyle, AI reminds us of its potential at every stage! As a result, we get to enjoy safer banking, faster online transactions, customized recommendations on eCommerce sites, or instant insurance claim approvals.
