The New Era of Artificial Intelligence

With artificial intelligence and machine learning dominating the minds of the brightest innovators in the world, humanity steps confidently into the new era of artificial intelligence. The AI revolution started slow and steady bringing us innovations such as the GPS, weather forecast tools, and voice-based smart assistants while dreaming of self-driving cars, self-flying aircraft, and robotic surgery. And those dreams are now a reality.

Big tech companies like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon are a few steps ahead of the competition due to their access to colossal amounts of data, but soon hundreds of AI startups will get their hands on resources that will allow them to reinvent the world as we knew it based on artificial intelligence technology.

The extraordinary is already the mundane

AI is present in our daily lives without us even noticing anymore. Whether it’s in our conversations with Siri or Alexa or our chats with AI chatbots, whether we’re using it for surf forecasting, to control our smart appliances, or to play VR games, we are already hooked. And there is no going back! Only looking forward.

Big tech companies will be using AI and machine learning to create computers so complex that humans will have no way to keep up with their level of sophistication. Thus, according to Tesla Motors and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, we will need to implant “neural laces” in our brains. And many believe him!

While this may seem like something out of a science fiction novel, the way things are evolving makes us open to the idea that this will eventually happen. Considering that the global spending on artificial intelligence will grow from $50.1 billion in 2020 to more than $110 billion in 2024, the trend is obvious and irrefutable. We are heading towards a new era of artificial intelligence! And it is going to be glorious.

Sure, there are the pessimists and futurists who associate AI with massive unemployment and vengeful robots but this will probably be the one thing exclusively reserved for science-fiction novels. Artificial intelligence is constructive and focused. Its true goals are to improve our lives. Come to think of it, artificial intelligence aims to be a mundane presence in our lives and will not be chasing the sensational.

Already used in several fields to predict outcomes and recognize patterns, AI is now a reliable partner for marketing functions, financial programs, and web search systems. Voice-based smart assistants are already helping millions of humans in their everyday lives while human resource companies are using AI to assure unbiased hiring processes. The travel industry has evolved greatly due to AI tools to meet customer needs and offer personalized services.

Evolution is the only path to survival

IBM is currently working to develop cognitive AI technology to create a supercomputer that will be involved in everything from cancer research to teaching robots foreign languages. According to the company’s CEO Ginni Rometty “in five years, there’s no doubt in my mind that cognitive AI will impact every decision made”. Things are changing fast in the artificial intelligence universe and this technology will reinvent all major services – from healthcare and education to finance and politics.  

Will this mean a potential unemployment crisis? Will robots take our place? Not if we evolve and keep up with the change. Technology is meant to bring disruptions and revolutionize but this doesn’t mean humans will find themselves on the losing side. We need to adapt and grow. We need to learn new skills and work side by side with robots and technology. AI is not here to replace us. It is here to supplement our work and help us reach our potential. It is here to clear our path toward a more efficient way of doing things.

The new era of technology requires us to step out of our comfort zone and into the big and beautiful unknown. Companies will need to train their employees to learn how to manage and handle their new AI investments and employees will have to learn to trust the machines. There is no battle between us and artificial intelligence. It’s just the next evolutionary step we need to take.

The new era of artificial intelligence announces itself as an era of continuous learning. We need to train and retrain and keep assimilating if we want to stay relevant. Humans will not become obsolete but some jobs will. However, this means that new job opportunities will take their place. AI will assign routine processes to machines to give us more time to invest in tasks that do justice to our potential.

And maybe Musk is right! Maybe we will have to augment brains to keep up with the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence and machine learning technology. Will this mean that we will lose part of our humanity or simply evolve?