Ireland is brimming with tech talent and has fast become the European hub for ICT giants and start ups alike. So, what is the next step? Well the newest buzzword AI of course!
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a very significant development and it’s the biggest technological shake up that’s disturbing traditional approaches worldwide. In fact, recent analysis revealed that AI will boost Ireland’s GDP in 2030 by 11.6% to €48 billion. In short, AI is a tech revolution and if you or your company wants to leverage the economic potential, It’s time to start learning about it!
So, What Exactly is AI?
Artificial intelligence can be difficult to define and there is much debate about what constitutes the most accurate definition. The most common understanding is that it is a wide-ranging branch of computer science concerned with building smart machines capable of performing tasks that would typically require human intelligence.
In other words, AI systems will often demonstrate at least some of the following behaviours which are associated with human intelligence: planning, learning, reasoning, problem solving, knowledge representation, perception, motion, and manipulation and, to a lesser extent, social intelligence and creativity.
Artificial Intelligence is further broken down into two broad categories, Narrow AI and Artificial General Intelligence (AGI).
Narrow AI
Narrow AI is the most successful realisation and implementation of artificial intelligence to date. The principles of narrow AI is that a computer is trained in performing one specific task extremely well. It “learns” how to do the said task through techniques known as machine learning and deep learning.
Simply put, machine learning feeds data to a computer and uses statistical techniques to help it “learn” how to get progressively better at performing a task, without having been specifically programmed for it, this essentially eliminates the need for millions of lines of written code. Machine learning can be both supervised learning (using labeled data sets) and unsupervised learning (using unlabeled data sets).
Deep learning is even more exciting as it is a type of machine learning that runs inputs through a biologically-inspired neural network architecture. The neural networks contain a number of hidden layers through which the data is processed, allowing the machine to go “deep” in its learning, making connections and weighting input for the best results.
Examples of Narrow AI include;
- Google search
- Siri and Alexa
- Image recognition software.
Artificial General Intelligence
The concept of AGI is very different, it is the type of adaptable intellect found in humans. It is a flexible form of intelligence which is capable of learning how to carry out vastly different tasks, this could be anything from cleaning your home to building spreadsheets. The aim is to build a machine that is capable of reasoning about a wide variety of topics based on its accumulated experience.
To put it in simple terms, it is the creation of a machine with human-level intelligence that can be applied to any task. This is the Holy Grail for many AI researchers, but the quest for AGI has proven to be extremely difficult. Although many strides have been made and this area of research is becoming more and more popular as companies seek to find the answer and lead the way in the industry.
AGI has long been the inspiration for many science fiction depictions of future dystopian worlds, in which super-intelligent robots have overrun humanity. This often further fuels debates among sceptics as to whether this is something humanity should be pursuing… Thankfully experts agree it’s not something we need to worry about anytime soon!
Understand What it Can Do for You
A lot of the resistance to AI can be attributed to a lack of understanding. That’s perfectly reasonable, there’s so much information out there that it can become daunting. In fact, it often brings rise to this debate of the “machine making the human obsolete”. In reality however, if AI is implemented correctly, it can act to free up employee resources. So, employees can say goodbye to the mundane day to day tasks and put their energy into tackling more important and challenging things, that usually they wouldn’t have had time for.
Once you understand what AI is, you can begin to see its potential. It can support your business strategy, reduce costs, improve products and services and drive efficiencies at every level.
Are You Interested in Becoming an AI Expert?
Do you want to develop your skills to be a successful leader in AI? Do you want to kick-start your career and really stand out and improve your career opportunities in this fast growing AI tech market?
If the answer is yes, and you want to find out more about our next AI courses please visit here or contact us.