Artificial Intelligence. Are You Sure?
by Mark Edwards - CEO, Boss Equity
To any executive in the software sector, I don’t have to mention how popular the term “AI” is at the moment. So, I won’t. Let's just agree that it's starting to become a cliché to the extent that we no longer see it anymore.
So, let’s start by looking at the words and defining their true meaning.
Artificial Intelligence = “Computer systems able to perform tasks normally requiring human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages.”
One related area, that is frequently confused with AI, is Machine Learning. To establish a definition for Machine Learning, I would suggest:
Machine Learning = “A type of artificial intelligence in which computers use huge amounts of data to learn how to do tasks, rather than being programmed to do them.”
Not sure if that helps!
What does “the average man on the London omnibus” - as we used to say long before AI was even thought of – think, when Artificial Intelligence is mentioned? Probably, an image of human-looking robots springs to mind, where they serve us until their “intelligence” inevitably makes them decide that we are superfluous. They then decide to kill us off so they can have the planet to themselves. Such futuristic scenarios are fuelled by a diet of second-rate sci-fi films, all of which follow a similar plot.
AI - The Buzzword of the Moment
The current reality is that even the lowly amoeba exhibits an originality of autonomous thought that beats even the most powerful computers. The software marketers know that AI is the hot buzzword of the moment. As a consequence, no self-respecting software marketer sends out an email without the letters “AI” in at least every heading and sometimes in every sentence.
For those of you who can remember twenty years ago, the same scenario was being played out with the term “Business Intelligence” - A concept that you could extract the “intelligence” that would normally be buried and lost in your business and use it to dominate the world – So, how did that pan out?
The Fate of Business Intelligence
Well, I think the words were being used in the marketing game of software “scrabble” until it reached such a level of hype, that it became a platitude and people lost interest. After that, companies started to drop the term.
There were a few PR disasters in Business Intelligence, which meant that some of those companies that were the ‘darlings of the day’ began to try and disassociate themselves from the phrase as if it were some form of the bubonic plague - That can be particularly tough when you have sprinkled it liberally through your marketing collateral.
Artificial Intelligence is a very interesting and sophisticated aspect of technology. It would be a shame if it were overhyped and twisted too far from the truth and realistic deliverables. It has value today and will undoubtedly deliver exceptional benefits in the future.
Funding for AI is Readily Available
I think there is enormous potential in the area of software marketing, and funding is readily available to support AI development. Both suppliers and customers stand to benefit, so the situation is a win-win all round, meaning that rapid progress can be made.
However, software guys, try and stop it becoming part of every headline and every proposition you make. Today’s powerful concept can quickly garner negative connotations, becoming yesterday’s cliché, if the term is too heavily abused.
