Tech giants including Baidu and Google spent between $20B to $30B on AI in 2016, with 90% of this spent on R&D and deployment, and 10% on AI acquisitions. AI investment has turned into a race for patents and intellectual property (IP) among the world’s leading tech companies.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY IT MATTERS
This article from McKinsey provides an overview of the investments, improvements and priorities in AI and machine learning as of mid 2017.
The AI Race - Documentary ABC TV The world of the future and how jobs will be impacted with artificial intelligence
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY IT MATTERS
The 30 min video provides a good overview of the potential impact of AI in certain industries. A great example comes from the field of law, where law assistants may soon be replaced (enhanced?) by AI tools such as Ailira http://www.ailira.com/
The emerging technologies on the Gartner Inc. Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies, 2017 reveal three distinct megatrends that will enable businesses to survive and thrive in the digital economy over the next five to 10 years. Artificial intelligence (AI) everywhere, transparently immersive experiences and digital platforms are the trends that will provide unrivaled intelligence, create profoundly new experiences and offer platforms that allow organizations to connect with new business ecosystems.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY IT MATTERS
No surprise in this list but the hype cycle is always a great tool to visualize and spark strategy discussions around emerging technologies.
An Amazon team at Lab126, a research center based in San Francisco, has developed an algorithm that learns about a particular style of fashion from images, and can then generate new items in similar styles from scratch—essentially, a simple AI fashion designer. The approach is crude and hardly ready for Project Runway, but it hints at the possibilities.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Not only does this experiment show potential for AI to enter the protected world of human creativity, it also signals we soon will be able to go from idea to design to production to sales using AI, automated 3D printing factories and eCommerce. Will we soon see a fully autonomous fashion retailer with no designers, no production staff, no stores that create and sell original clothing?
Artificial Intelligence seems to make headlines with every innovation, garnering both praise and fear. But is it really at the point where we should fear everyday AI? Here are 17 common place applications for AI systems and a look into where the technology could be going.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Feels like AI is everywhere these days. True. This list may help you draw the same conclusion I have: look at any task that requires analysis of large volume of data or visual images or sound and there is a good chance AI will be able to help improve them.
Meet Todai Robot, an AI project that performed in the top 20 percent of students on the entrance exam for the University of Tokyo -- without actually understanding a thing. While it's not matriculating anytime soon, Todai Robot's success raises alarming questions for the future of human education. How can we help kids excel at the things that humans will always do better than AI?
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
The video is short and provides very good explanation of how the AI can pass the University entrance exam without understanding a thing. Nevertheless, I find this amazing because once AI learns something, or acquires a skill, *every* other AI can benefit from it. As opposed to humans who *individually* have to learn new things for themselves. Thus, we can expect AI to learn at an exponential rate and become truly "intelligent" very rapidly. This example should be a wake up call for all of us.
ARK Invest aims to identify large-scale investment opportunities resulting from technological change. We believe innovation is key to growth. From a broad spectrum of disruptive innovations, Big Ideas represents our annual breakout of technologies that we believe will accelerate significantly in the months ahead.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Investment firms tend to be very traditional in their approach. This one appears to be embracing the digital transformation and making very insightful research that - from what they claim - guides their investments. Great idea. Now we'll see if their assumptions prove right and generate more returns than other investment guidance. I have a feeling it will.
Topics covered: 3D printing, additive manufacturing, artificial intelligence, automation, autonomous taxis, autonomous vehicles, bitcoin, blockchain, CRISPR, cryptocurrency, deep learning, dna sequencing, fintech, genomics, machine learning, mobile, robotics, shared autonomous vehicles
From cloud computing and lithium ion batteries to 3D printing and containerization, we collected the technologies that have done the most to shape the internet era.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
I usually repost those things around new years, with all the predictions etc. but this list seemed to me so appropriate and so true that I wanted to share now.
I usually repost those things around new years, with all the predictions etc. but this list seemed to me so appropriate and so true that I wanted to share now.
Have you looked at Google Trends? It’s pretty cool — you enter some keywords and see how Google Searches of that term vary through time. I thought — hey, I happen to have this arxiv-sanity database of 28,303 (arxiv) Machine Learning papers over the last 5 years, so why not do something similar and take a look at how Machine Learning research has evolved over the last 5 years?
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
More research = more discoveries so we can expect even more practical uses of machine intelligence in the coming years...
70% of retail decision makers globally are ready to adopt the Internet of Things to improve customer experiences.
73% of retailers rate managing big data as important or business-critical to their operations.
78% of retailers say it is important or business-critical to integrate e-commerce and in-store experiences, so an omnichannel experience is delivered to every customer.
87% of retailers will deploy mobile point-of-sale (MPOS) devices by 2021, enabling them to scan and accept credit or debit payments anywhere in the store.
90% of retailers will implement buy online, pickup in store by 2021.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Based on a detailed report, this article provides a chockful of stats about investments in certain technologies. Although based on a survey, it confirms certain trends that are widely accepted - so there should be no surprises for readers of this blog.
Machine learning is on the edge of revolutionizing those 12 sectors. Most leaders in those industries look at Machine Learning and see a non-stable, none viable technology in the short term.
A ranking of the 100 most promising private artificial intelligence companies.
It is a purely data-driven/algorithmic process that uses CB Insights data. We’ve gathered this data via our machine learning technology (dubbed The Cruncher) as well as via several thousand direct submissions from firms and individual professionals using The Editor. The Company Mosaic page walks through the factors considered in the algorithm in some detail but at a high level, it considers several factors including: - Momentum – Considers non-traditional signals including news mentions, sentiment, jobs data/hiring, social media, web traffic and usage, partnerships, and more. - Market – Quantifies the health of the sector and industry the company is involved in, including funding, deals, exit activity, and hiring. - Money — Assesses financial signals including funding recency and total raised. - Investor quality – Weighs the quality of the investors participating in deals to the company, judging investors based on exits, returns, and portfolio quality.
Farid Mheir's insight:
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Are we on the eve of an era where the Fortune 500 is replaced by the "AI 100"?
This may be more realistic than you think if the current predictions regarding the future of work push humans to service each other and let all the "work" be done by machines - robots and AI.
We are not there yet and this list merely reports 100 startups that are very active in the field AI. Nevertheless, it is interesting to consider what impact AI may have and adjust our digital strategies accordingly...
The Artificial Intelligence Revolution isn’t around the corner—it’s here. A common remark is that as soon as some new form of AI is possible, it’s no longer AI, it’s just what computers “do”. And while we won’t notice most of AI’s effects in our world, there will be visible signs as digital technology is infused with AI. Through the lens of commerce, it’s easier to see AI’s deep effects as progress continues. Here are a few examples.
Farid Mheir's insight:
Very proud to share an article I recently co-authored on CloudRaker blog with Simon Hudson. It sheds lights into the potential impacts that AI will have on retail stores.
Raffi Khatchadourian on Nick Bostrom, an Oxford philosopher who asks whether inventing artificial intelligence will bring us utopia or destruction.
Farid Mheir's insight:
Perfect Sunday morning reading which is guaranteed to make you reflect and ponder for the next weeks. The article is a typical New Yorker one, very well researched and written. So captivating that it got me to start reading the book which appears to be as captivating and surprisingly easy to read and understand. I love those finds and have the feeling this book will be the best complement to "Singularity is Near" and "On Intelligence" that I wrote about in the past.
Perfect Sunday morning reading which is guaranteed to make you reflect and ponder for the next weeks. The article is a typical New Yorker one, very well researched and written. So captivating that it got me to start reading the book which appears to be as captivating and surprisingly easy to read and understand. I love those finds and have the feeling this book will be the best complement to "Singularity is Near" and "On Intelligence" that I wrote about in the past.
Raffi Khatchadourian on Nick Bostrom, an Oxford philosopher who asks whether inventing artificial intelligence will bring us utopia or destruction.
Farid Mheir's insight:
Perfect Sunday morning reading which is guaranteed to make you reflect and ponder for the next weeks. The article is a typical New Yorker one, very well researched and written. So captivating that it got me to start reading the book which appears to be as captivating and surprisingly easy to read and understand. I love those finds and have the feeling this book will be the best complement to "Singularity is Near" and "On Intelligence" that I wrote about in the past.
Perfect Sunday morning reading which is guaranteed to make you reflect and ponder for the next weeks. The article is a typical New Yorker one, very well researched and written. So captivating that it got me to start reading the book which appears to be as captivating and surprisingly easy to read and understand. I love those finds and have the feeling this book will be the best complement to "Singularity is Near" and "On Intelligence" that I wrote about in the past.
2016 was an incredible year for technology, and for humanity. Despite all the negative political-related news, there were 10 tech trends this year that positively transformed humanity.
For this “2017 Kick-Off” blog, I reviewed 52 weeks of science and technology breakthroughs, and categorized them into the top 10 tech trends changing our world.
I’m blown away by how palpable the feeling of exponential change has become.
I’m also certain that 99.999% of humanity doesn’t understand or appreciate the ramifications of what is coming.
In this blog, enjoy the top 10 tech trends of the past 12 months and why they are important to you.
Farid Mheir's insight:
I am not a big fan of trends and yearly predictions as a glimpse into the future. However, I like them because they provide a good state of the nation - a condensed picture of where we are and what are hot topics.
This review is of particular value in that respect and I especially like #2 where author states "2016 was the year solar and renewable energy became cheaper than coal" because it goes against what we often hear, yet confirms something we expect will happen as it has been predicted for such a long time.
People hated 2016 so much that the year itself became a punchline. But for every grim reminder that things are amiss, we saw people fight for a better future.
Farid Mheir's insight:
The best of the Verge, very interesting papers on digital topics including machine learning, ecommerce, social media, self-driving cars, batteries, and many more.
As we pass 2.5bn smartphones on earth and head towards 5bn, and mobile moves from creation to deployment, the questions change. What's the state of the smartphone, machine learning and 'GAFA', and what can we build as we stand on the shoulders of giants?
Farid Mheir's insight:
Amazing insights into the mobile industry state and trends.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Andreessen Horowitz, and Benedict Evans in particular, have been known to spot trends long before everyone else. Here again, it appears they are making predictions about retailing - following in the steps of the print industry when Internet came along. Not certain I agree about the parallel but I agree that mobile and AI and other technologies will impact and transform the retail world in the near future. However, as opposed to the print media, retailers often sell physical goods that cannot, for now, be 3D printed at home. So either you pick them up in the store or get it delivered by FedEx or a drone.
That being said, retail stores are bound to transform in showrooms and service centers as I wrote about in the past. And this is a major shift that many will fail to take.
Maths ability will get you furthest, says Harvard's Davis Deming. As long as you've got the social skills to go with it.
Could a robot do your job? Millions of people who didn’t see automation coming will soon find out the painful way. The answer is a resounding yes. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobsstudy predicts that 5 million jobs will be lost before 2020 as artificial intelligence, robotics, nanotechnology and other socio-economic factors replace the need for human workers.
Farid Mheir's insight:
One important stat from The Future of Jobs report is that the top trend that will drive change in work is new technology and innovation.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
All jobs will be affected by technology and thus every good digital transformation should include the human disruption and its impact on current and future employees. Too often, we implement digital change and fail to consider people impact.
Look at UBER taxis: their model is to plow ahead and disrupt the market but they have failed to accompany the taxi drivers that are impacted. Because of it they are facing huge head winds from governments and established corporations.
On the other hand, Teo Taxi (Montreal-based) has recognized the people impact and embraced human transformation of the cab drivers which results in much better relationships and less confrontation. Same technology, same process, different human approach.
The implications of this are wide and varied, and data scientists are coming up with new use cases for machine learning every day, but these are some of the top, most interesting use cases currently being explored.
Farid Mheir's insight:
From healthcare to security, AI will invade our lives. Get ready.
Stay up-to-date with the latest product announcements and new advancements from Automated Insights.
Farid Mheir's insight:
The company automated insights uses its AI tools to automatically write summary of baseball games (http://bit.ly/2a9g7qR), financial portfolio (http://bit.ly/2a9gG3T), and many other. This blog describes many of these applications.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
I wrote about automated insights in the past (http://sco.lt/7FRff7) as it was starting and have been watching ever since. It is important to take notice that AI has been hired by the Associated Press to write summary texts that go straight to the wire without human intervention (http://sco.lt/7FRff7).
This is a trend worth watching as it means AI is slowing replacing human workers with machine intelligence in fields that were previously though impossible - here the redaction of human readable texts and stories. I wrote about data on why no job is safe from automatization and robotization (http://sco.lt/64xeyX).
Anyone putting together a digital strategy must absolutely consider the use of such AI tools in the coming years, and thus have a roadmap with trials starting as soon as NOW.
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WHY IT MATTERS
This article from McKinsey provides an overview of the investments, improvements and priorities in AI and machine learning as of mid 2017.