WHO ARE THE MACHINES?
by Kate Steele, Executive Vice President EMEA, Creation
The possibilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT) and robotics are breath-taking but we’d like to zero in on what it really means: at work, at home and at play.
What will driverless cars mean for city planners, the insurance industry and cab drivers? What happens when the Internet of Things runs your house — will we never run out of milk or forget to turn off the lights again? Probably, but then who gets to see our domestic data?
Creation’s taken a look at the very near future (and in some cases the almost now and the now) because so much of what is written and talked about is very technical and in many cases seems a long way off…and we’d like to start thinking about things in a more practical way, today. These technologies present organizations with some incredible opportunities. So we’ve spoken to people who are already building this new reality and they’ve shared their thoughts with us, below.
But before we engage in some near-future-gazing over the coming weeks, let’s break down just what these technologies actually are.
AI — you’ve read the stories about a computer beating players at Go but artificial intelligence is so much more than being great at games. Today we produce huge amounts of data (via devices and all uploaded to the cloud) and globally have vast computing resources, some of which are programmed to mimic the way our human brains work. Crunching data in a volume no human ever could, machines can now detect patterns and so recognize images (the difference between a human hand in a factory and a piece of kit); speech (about as accurately as humans) and help find new cures for diseases and they keep learning. If you’ve got Alexa in your kitchen or Siri on your phone, then you’re already engaging with AI.
IoT — simply, this is all about connecting devices over the internet and letting them talk to each other and to us. And yes, we’re all familiar with the cliché of the smart fridge but IoT-enabled devices are everywhere. Right now. We’re seeing this start to happen with smart meters in homes; in hospitals to monitor patients; at City-level to manage traffic flows and pollution and in agriculture to check on crops and livestock.
As for robotics, we all know what robots are. They’ve been used in manufacturing and logistics for years now — whether spray-painting cars, or helping to pick products in warehouses. They’re supporting surgeons and even being trialled to deliver drugs to patients in hospital. Although they still can’t manage to beat a human football team…
