Artificial Intelligence is an often-misused term developed to describe any machine capable of making complex, intelligent decisions on its own. This differs from a machine able to mimic or repeat human decision-making. Since the 1940s, when Alan Turing devised his famous 'Turing Test' for computer intelligence, artificial intelligence has become more and more of a reality. More powerful computers capable of assessing more and more data instantly have enabled the writing of 'narrow' Artificial Intelligence algorithms. These algorithms have been capable of intelligent reasoning, but only when faced with a predetermined kind of task. Narrow AI has many applications in business, and this article lays out some of them.

In order to be considered intelligent, a machine or algorithm has to be able to meet some criteria. It must be capable of:

Reasoning

Being able to deduce or induce truth using reason is complex. Analyzing past data and learned social or natural paradigms to actively make informed decisions is a key criterion for intelligence.

Perception

Humans and animals make sense of the world by perceiving and exploring it using sense organs. We see, hear, touch, or smell the information that our brains assess. An Artificial Intelligence must be able to perceive data: whether that consists of quantitative data, visual data, audio data, or anything else.

Language

Although machines can commonly mimic language, it is not considered intelligent. In order to be truly intelligent, a machine must be capable of productive language. Productive language involves the creation of sentences using inferred meanings and known paradigms instead of just searching for appropriate words from a bank. The primary test for productive language in computers is known as the Turing Test. Alan Turing was one of the fathers of modern computing and devised a test that aimed to ascertain if a computer could intelligently use language. The Turing Test is successfully passed if a computer is mistaken for a human more than 30% of the time during a series of five-minute keyboard conversations.

Learning

Learning is a key sign of intelligence. An intelligent machine or algorithm can take in data, analyze it and improve its own functionality without any human input. Theoretically, a machine learning computer can identify areas of improvement far more easily than a human scientist can by constantly auditing data and performance. It can also learn from external datasets, which is incredibly useful in business applications.

What, then, are the applications of AI in the world of business? Let's look at some of the most prominent examples. AI application is one of the most active and fascinating areas of research conducted by postgraduate business students. If you were thinking of conducting some research into Artificial Intelligence, you could take a look at some of the online DBA courses UK universities have. Doctorates in Business Administration is geared towards executives keen to hone and reinvigorate their knowledge.

Business Intelligence

Business intelligence is the analysis and collection of data to inform strategy. Artificial Intelligence has been absolutely revolutionary in the field. Artificial Intelligence allows a program to make very accurate predictive insights. In business intelligence lingo, predictive insights are essentially market forecasts. Traditionally, these were made by a human being, who analyzed data and charted a predicted course it would take. Artificially Intelligent programs can take into account more datasets and more accurately create a projected set of outcomes. They can learn efficiently from the success and failure of previous predictions and consistently improve their performance.

Shipping and Stock Automation

AI has found a home in shipping and stock automation. Shipping backlogs and stock shortages can be made a thing of the past by programming an application that analyses purchase data and stock in order to automatically order new items. Businesses can save a great deal of money in this way by avoiding over or under-stocking and never missing a shipping deadline.

Customer Service

Artificial Intelligence has proven useful in online customer service. Intelligent chatbots are able to offer customers instant advice without any human input from the operating company. The service these bots offer can become better with time as they learn more social cues and develop intelligent protocols. At the moment, these bots are usually quite narrow in their applications: they tend to elevate an issue to a human contact if it seems complex. In the future, however, AI chatbots that pass the Turing test will be indistinguishable from human operators. This has obvious financial benefits for the operating company, which will be able to scale down their skilled workforce or reassign staff to more productive tasks.

Marketing

AI in marketing is primarily used to gain insights into target audiences in ways that were incredibly time-consuming to do before the rise of AI. Market research is an essential part of any marketing campaign. AI scours big datasets to produce audience profiles far more accurate and insightful than a single human could. This allows for the creation of targeted advertising and a far more predictable and gainful return for companies investing in marketing campaigns.

Manufacturing

Whilst robotics has been used in manufacturing for many years, Artificial Intelligence is just starting to break into the field. AI programs can learn from mistakes and identify any structural weaknesses in a manufactured item. This is an especially important factor in the creation of sensitive and highly precise items such as satellites and computer components. Manufacturers investing in AI can rest easy knowing that the quality auditing process in their production line is intelligent and accurate 24 hours a day.

Of course, nothing is capable of replacing a human inspector in some cases. Humans will always have a role in manufacturing, even if it largely revolves around the maintenance of Artificially Intelligent devices. It is important to note that none of the AI applications in this article would be capable of completely replacing a human role. AI is still typically narrow in application, and not yet an actual displacer of human labor in the way that Isaac Asimov predicted in his seminal book I Robot.