How AI will enhance business and industry in the future
Adrienne Gormley, head of EMEA and VP of global customer experience at Dropbox “There is a lot of attention, rightfully so, on AI having the ability to predict user needs and analyse data patterns in a more effective manner. For instance, machine intelligence can surface the content you will need for a meeting or recognise images, so you don’t have to remember file names. Machines can do the more structured tasks, which will enable humans to focus on the work that matters.
“In the future, we will see AI take on more complicated tasks. As AI continues to develop, humans will have more natural and seamless interactions. AI can have a huge impact on the way we work, by cutting through the clutter and helping to get us to the most relevant and important content at the right time. We can stop reacting, or responding to, the latest thing to hit us and start paying attention to the stuff that is most critical, solving bigger problems.
“Humans will have minimal involvement in AI development due to growing capabilities of self-learning. Machines will be able to consolidate knowledge from disparate systems, determine what’s best, and teach itself. At the moment, conversational AI might be based on simple keyword recognition and rudimentary responses, whereas in the future we will see complex back-and-forth dialogue. This will open the opportunities for humans to spend more time on more meaningful and creative work.
“Not only will the interactions we have with AI become second nature, there will be a blurring of lines between machines and humans. Ultimately, we won’t be cognisant of most of our interactions with AI, and this will naturally take time to adapt to.”
Kieran McSherry, director of manufacturing engineering at Johnson & Johnson Vision in Limerick “At Johnson & Johnson Vision, Industry 4.0 technologies are allowing the vast complexity of our supply chain and manufacturing environment to be digitally simplified, where the right information is at hand to make faster, more informed decisions. AI technologies layered on top of that are automating some of those decisions, which ensures that key skillsets are applied to solving problems and not caught in repeat-type decisions. These technologies are also being applied to customer interfaces, where machine learning algorithms are ensuring we stay ahead of market trends for current and future products. These technologies are key to ensuring competitive advantage for the future of our business.
“Embedding these technologies in our business will help us enhance our global scale and reach, meet our customers’ needs for customisation and flexibility, and further enable new services and products to market.
“They will allow faster more accurate consumer insights, the ability to make more customised experiences, and enable faster time to market of new products. Embracing these technologies allows for opportunities to upskill our people and create more value-driven roles.
“When an automated machine can self-learn through machine learning [ML] algorithms, it will allow certain processes to optimise themselves. This will maximise high-quality output, representing a major step forward for manufacturing.”
Dr Prag Sharma, senior vice-president and emerging technology development lead, Citi Innovation Labs “AI singularly promises better decision-making capabilities across the business. Today, AI-powered solutions inform our client engagements, automate currently manual operational activities and enhance our continuous risk and compliance-monitoring activities. Industry 4.0 technologies, such as increased interconnectivity through IoT-enabled devices, promise to open the floodgates for real-time data access and manipulation, enabling dynamic products and services in cash management and trade finance in the future.
“These technologies will lead to the ‘ML-powered banker’ in the near future.
