NetworkTigers discusses the way AI transforms businesses in multiple ways.
Should humanity dwell on the fear that artificial intelligence (AI) will replace human workers and jobs? Perhaps it is better to celebrate the ways that the technology already helps businesses to be more innovative, efficient, competitive, and adaptable.
Automation and time-saving
Artificial intelligence is well-suited to performing repetitive, ongoing, and time-sensitive functions. Take onboarding as an example. The sooner new employees can access and complete paperwork, submit their financial and tax information, and learn about company policy, the faster they can get to work. Automating routine onboarding processes that require fast access to materials can free HR to deal with more pressing interpersonal concerns, especially those requiring a human touch.
Removing language barriers
AI-based programs like Google Translate have already come far at reducing language barriers between businesses, but new advances in machine learning based on National Language Processing (NLP) may be able to streamline the process even more. NLP offers promising options for text-to-speech that can make conference calls, in-person meetings, and ordering across different countries and languages smoother and less subject to errors. By adding the ability to “infer” meaning based on a wide array of data inputs by native speakers, NLP makes real-time translations more accurate and widely accessible.
Improving cybersecurity
AI has the potential to enhance and strengthen cybersecurity across businesses. Cybersecurity is one of the most dangerous and expensive threats businesses face today. According to research from Deloitte, data breaches by businesses have risen exponentially. Between 2015 and 2020, the number of stolen business records increased by a whopping 4,379%. As more and more data moves online, the volume of compromised information per breach has also risen by 141%.
Meanwhile, AI-driven cybersecurity offers expanded opportunities for protection. AI-based cybersecurity is always-on, meaning that it can reduce response time and limit the extent of a breach that happens after work hours. As many threats come from across the globe, this area of protection cannot be overrated. AI cybersecurity can also evolve in response to threats faster than human ingenuity can detect threat patterns and spot network weaknesses that human eyes might miss.
Perhaps most importantly, AI-based cyber risks are already growing. AI can guess passwords, force entry and find weak spots. AI-based password-guessing technology like PassGAN can crack 65% of common passwords within less than one hour. If another data breach has already exposed that password, it has a 100% success rate in finding the weakness and providing hackers with access to the compromised account. AI-based cybersecurity must be in place to rise to the challenge posed by hackers who misuse this powerful new technology for their own ends.
Marketing and content generation
By now, everyone knows about the startling success of ChatGPT and generative AI at creating images, writing essays, and summarizing information. These kinds of automated content generation are perhaps best suited to automating marketing roles. Studies show that 46% of businesses now use AI like Jasper or ChatGPT to write marketing emails, social media posts, and other kinds of content meant to reach customers faster and more efficiently.
AI can not only be used to generate this kind of content but also to A/B test different subject lines, optimize timing, and otherwise boost engagement. In an always-on economy that revolves around social media trends, smartphone-based marketing, and capturing attention, AI can keep up and push your content to the top of the queue.
Hiring and identifying trends
Companies have begun to use AI to pre-screen qualified applicants, highlight resumés with certain features, and identify retention issues. AI can help illustrate employee trends as well as weak spots. It can identify a lack of diverse candidates and help fight hiring biases by recommending candidates based only on skills and training instead of interpersonal connections or “leg-ups” within the process. It can also highlight when employees drop out and aggregate data about complaints or problems within company culture as a neutral third party.
Data analysis and improvement
Machine learning (ML) is one of the most common areas of AI processing companies already use. It involves capturing the vast amounts of data that become available through always-on devices and the Internet of Things (IoT), processing it, creating data subsets, and illustrating patterns that are then digestible by human executives.
ML data analysis invites real opportunities for companies to change for the better. For example, ML may be used to analyze online shopping trends. Patterns identified by ML might illustrate that certain items are being returned and lead to the greatest drop in customer retention. Spotting and identifying this pattern clearly would urge a company to improve manufacturing standards for this one product, streamline the return process, or take other steps to address this issue.
Customer service
You might be surprised to learn that customer service is one key area that may benefit from artificial intelligence. After all, isn’t customer service the kind of “soft skill” area that is supposed to be best suited to human interaction? However, many businesses are turning to AI-based algorithms to provide recommendations for returning customers that can suit their needs better and faster, based on aggregating data about a consumer’s likes and dislikes. AI-based customer service is always on, meaning consumers can submit complaints in real time and receive help or product use guidance faster than a human representative can provide. Customer service tasks that can be automated can provide consumers with faster service to resolve issues, as well as future recommendations customized to their preferences.
AI is the future, like it or not. As more businesses integrate artificial intelligence into their every day, it transforms how other companies must respond to keep up. Innovation is at every turn in today’s fields like cybersecurity, customer service, logistics, marketing, retail, and more.
About NetworkTigers
NetworkTigers is the leader in the secondary market for Grade A, seller-refurbished networking equipment. Founded in January 1996 as Andover Consulting Group, which built and re-architected data centers for Fortune 500 firms, NetworkTigers provides consulting and network equipment to global governmental agencies, Fortune 2000, and healthcare companies. www.networktigers.com.
