AI and artificial intelligence have been one of the main buzzwords of 2019 – and many companies are starting to research or invest in the technology to improve efficiency in their organisation.
AI involves taking existing data and creating models that can predict future behaviour. If you know that something or a customer is going to act in a certain way, AI should be able to learn this and respond quickly or automatically to the requirements.
Examples of businesses that use AI
Home assistants – Home assistants such as Amazon’s Alexa, Google Home and Apple’s Siri will understand your preferences for music, commuting, shopping and often pre-empt these with recommendations.
One of the most popular is Apple’s Siri which will pop up with a notification on your iPhone that ‘it is a 17-minute journey to home’ – before you have asked or requested it. The device knows that you typically leave work around this time and where you home is located and is able to use AI to offer suggestions or recommendations.
Google search – Google’s search engine and how they position companies on their rankings is based on an algorithm powered by AI. The system known as ‘hummingbird’ learns the patterns of what users click on and what techniques are used by the best brands to organise its search results.
Chatbots – Live chat boxes are very popular on websites offering any sort of customer service. Whilst there is often a friendly face on the window that pops up, the first few questions are usually answered by an AI machine which has anticipated the questions and responses – and this is likely to require humans less and less as time goes on.
Image verification – Facebook and Yelp use AI to pull in images and to identify anything inappropriate or potentially harmful to viewers. Using AI, Facebook are often able to suggest the names of individuals before they are tagged and can tell a face over an object or background.
Fraud and risk assessment – Creating models based on mounds of data, companies in finance, banking, insurance can use AI to pick out any fraudulent activity and better analyse risk by looking at the behaviour of delinquent customers.
Can my business use AI?
Yes, any business can use AI from a local bakery, online jewellery store or large insurance company. AI chatbots are very easy to install and only cost a few pound per month from the likes of LiveChat and Hubspot.
For marketing purposes, you may be able to understand the likes and preferences of your customers – and when they might buy. This could be useful for eCommerce websites and platforms but was also used by Coca Cola to understand the tastes of their customers and Cherry Sprite was launched as a result.
As AI becomes more mainstream, there are more and more companies who can offer it at an affordable price including AI companies like Optalitix who specialise in building models and integrating them through APIs.
There is also Phrasee.AI who use AI to optimise the subject lines and content in your emails and social media. See top 10 AI companies for more information.
Should my business use AI?
AI is perfect for any companies that analyse a lot of data and have a lot of processes. Companies that provide loans, insurance, banking and finance can utilise AI to better understand patterns in their data and make informed decisions.
AI can exist in the form of building data models and integrating them into your business – and this could involve offering better products, analysing risk and giving recommendations to customers.
The potential returns must outweigh the costs, but AI for your business should ultimately create a platform that involves the learning of these preferences and being able to respond faster than any human activity can.
