Driving a competitive edge with AI AI has dominated headlines in recent years, with research from PwC finding that its sustained growth will drive global GDP 14% higher by 2030 and contribute over $6tr to the economy. This will largely stem from productivity gains in the workplace and the automation of routine tasks, enabling employees to focus more on higher level services and revenuegenerating lines of business...
R
esearch reveals that over 80% of businesses believe that AI will help them drive a competitive advantage, and that its adoption represents a ‘strategic priority’ for their firm. Technological awareness and trust remain obstacles to overcome for some, but in so doing, how can businesses leverage AI-based applications to drive valuable operating efficiencies and gain a competitive edge?
in which ‘Eliza’ was born. This was a computer program developed by MIT in 1964 which could hold conversations with humans, becoming one of our first examples of a chatbot. Another breakthrough came in 1997, when ‘Deep Blue’, a ‘supercomputer’ developed by IBM, beat champion chess player, Garry Kasparov. The computer had somewhat of a competitive advantage, by being able to evaluate up to 200 million positions a second!
AI through the ages AI is the development of software which can work and ‘think’ like humans, and it is an umbrella term for a range of associated technologies including ‘machine learning’ and ‘deep learning’. Whilst the history of AI dates back to antiquity, the term was actually coined in the summer of 1956 during a meeting of academics on the topic, now known as the ‘Dartmouth Conference’. The following decades saw a boom into areas of research, including natural language processing (NLP) 102 / Issue 15
Today, chances are you will be using AI on a daily basis, via email spam filtering, Google Search and through virtual assistants on your smartphone or in your home, such as Apple’s ‘Siri’ and Amazon’s ‘Alexa’. Technology which has been made possible in part, by advances in APIs (software which communicates requests between two different points) and algorithms which can both detect patterns within data and react intuitively to insights gleaned from this information. That being said, we’re not quite
@AutoEntry_OCREX
Brendan Woods, founder and CEO, AutoEntry Brendan Woods is founder and CEO of AutoEntry. Originally a software developer in the hedge fund space, he quit his job and started the company to automate data entry for accountants and bookkeepers. AutoEntry, automates data entry of purchase and sales invoices, receipts, bank statements and more, providing significant time and cost savings. A trusted supplier to over 2,000 accounting firms worldwide, providing them with intelligent solutions for data entry automation.
at the stage where we’re living and working alongside robots in everything that we do. However, coupled with rapid advances in software capability and tech giants including Google and Microsoft pledging to devote billions of dollars into AI’s continued research, the next few years will almost certainly herald an exciting new era in technology. AI driving innovation in business AI is being applied in innovative ways across all business sectors, from healthcare and agriculture to retail and financial services, as companies seek to transform back office operations and provide superior customer experiences. Some everyday examples include: • Fraud prevention: Banks and credit card providers are adopting AI to fight fraudulent activity such as money laundering, by leveraging deep learning to uncover patterns in data and spot anomalies. Service providers are offering more digital channels than ever before, the scope
XU Magazine - the independent magazine for Xero users, by Xero users. Find us online at: xumagazine.com
