You may have heard of artificial intelligence (AI), which is usually defined as the science of making computers do things that would require intelligence if completed by humans. However, for many this seems like a visionary technology, not ready for day-to-day use within your business.
So you may be surprised to learn that AI could already be benefitting your business.
“Many service providers to small businesses are already leveraging AI’s capabilities,” reveals Dr. Andy Pardoe, founder of Informed.AI and homeAI.info.
“AI has never been more widely used, with many of the largest technology companies providing integrated AI platforms. This democratisation of AI is allowing small businesses to more easily add advanced data analytics and machine learning to their processes.”
Fourth industrial revolution
The term “artificial intelligence” was coined at a conference at Dartmouth University in 1956. However, revered computer scientist Alan Turing had been working in the field for many years already. In 1950, he developed the Turing Test to determine when a computer could be defined as “intelligent”. AI’s development was slow until the 1980s, when its cost-saving potential was recognised, with large corporations saving millions thanks to computer systems that emulated human decision-making.
Pardoe believes that “we’ve just entered the “Fourth Industrial Revolution”, and while the adoption of AI, machine learning (meaning AI that enables computers to learn new things without being explicitly programmed to do so) and intelligent automation has just started, the next few years will transform many sectors, with many more businesses benefitting from introducing AI to augment their human workforce’s skills and capabilities.
“The main way to share information about your business, its products and services has been via your website in recent years, but the next-generation sales channel will be messenger platforms and chatbots – potentially one of the first ways many businesses will introduce AI.”
AI technologies
“AI techniques are already used by many UK SMEs,” remarks Miltos Petridis, professor of computer science at the University of Middlesex. “Many off-the-shelf systems, including database, CRM, sales, and financial and planning software, now contain AI techniques and algorithms, which are used to integrate and interpret data.”
Some SMEs also use bespoke AI-enabled solutions to solve problems or otherwise boost their productivity, efficiency and profitability, Petridis adds. “AI technologies used include reasoning systems, machine learning, natural language processing, voice integration, image processing and planning.
“Businesses are increasingly using cloud-based solutions, such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and IBM Watson, but some are building bespoke systems with the help of specialists from the software industry and academia.”
Petridis believes that several disruptive technologies and events are likely to further affect AI’s permeation into small businesses in the UK. “Obvious ones include 5G, the Internet of Things, advances in robotics and driverless transport. However, these will require further advances in AI.”
Cost and efficiency savings
Pardoe says that improved efficiency could be the top benefit AI provides to business owners. “Acquiring customers is one of the most important and expensive business activities. AI can really add value here, making the sales process more efficient by determining which leads are most likely to convert or which customers will be interested in specific offers.”
AI is likely to be more widely used to automate complex or time-consuming processes, which will also save businesses time and money. “Where a process may have many transactions and various activities, automating the process also allows businesses to adapt to changes in demand more easily and quickly, which also provides cost savings,” says Pardoe.
Rosemary Gilligan, a researcher at the University of Hertfordshire, who specialises in AI, believes there are plenty of ways that AI could soon be helping UK SMEs. “I’ve seen presentations on how AI is being used for everything from tyre testing and car manufacture to controlling energy. Even one of the large bakery companies uses AI techniques when baking its cakes.”
Optimum resource use
Another potential performance improvement enabled by AI concerns “preventative monitoring”. As Pardoe explains, “by predicting potential failures of applications and hardware, we can improve system performance by fixing issues before they cause problems or downtime.”
AI could also significantly improve “resource optimisation,” he adds. “AI could better determine optimum resource use, which would improve overall performance and profitability. This could be anything from minimising energy consumption to determining the schedule of sales calls individual sale people make each day.”
Using AI to automate processes could also ensure superior quality, says Pardoe. “Human error can be removed from mundane tasks, freeing up humans to focus on higher-value, more complex tasks that require creative problem-solving. This is where humans perform better than computers – while finding the work more interesting and rewarding.”
AI’s superior analytics capabilities could also facilitate less obvious insights into the business, which could reveal areas requiring improvement. “Empowering businesses to make better decisions because of AI, improving their process efficiency, increasing quality and accuracy, and driving performance enhancements, will deliver significant cost savings,” he predicts.
Intelligence reporting
Gilligan explains that “AI systems are now being used for everything from helping to prevent fraud to identifying plagiarism. It’s being used in diagnostic systems, helping organisations to process huge volumes of data with great speed, efficiency and accuracy. It can also enable businesses to capture someone’s expertise, so it’s not lost to the employer when that person leaves.”
She concludes: “Some people think AI is the stuff of sci-fi, with robots thinking for themselves, like you see in the movies. But AI is now in the everyday - most of us already come into contact with it without realising, whether it’s search engines or other software we use. In the near future, AI will help many more businesses to find practical cost- and time-saving solutions to a huge range of challenges.”
Discussions around how tech developments can benefit your small business are taking place at QuickBooks Connect, a two-day conference for SMEs and accountants looking to network, collaborate and grow. QuickBooks Connect is taking place today and tomorrow at Tobacco Dock, London. For more information, click here.
