GETTING STARTED WITH AI:

Pick a small project to begin your AI journey

Despite a lot of buzz around AI, only a small percentage of business decision-makers are using AI-related technology in their business. A 2017 study by McKinsey Global Institute, for example, found only one in five were harnessing the benefits of this organisation-changing technology.

There are a couple of reasons why this may be the case. Firstly, AI is relatively new and business leaders are unsure of how to apply it to their operation. And, without insights, it can also be hard convincing key stakeholders of the return on investment of an emerging technology.

However, the risk of taking a ‘wait and see’ approach is that early adopters are taking advantage of their competitors’ hesitation and getting a big jump on them. The need to get up and running with AI is demonstrated by research company Gartner, who predicts that by 2020 AI will be a top five investment priority for over 30 percent of CIOs.

So where is a good place to start with AI in your organisation?

It helps to understand that AI offers huge amounts of processing and decision-making power. It never gets bored or tired or calls in sick after a big weekend. This means it has the capability of doing work in minutes that would take a human many, many hours.

Discover what your data can do

Data-crunching is a good candidate for the rapid processing that AI offers. These days, every business has large stores of data, but most don't know how to make use of this valuable resource. By applying machine-learning algorithms and computational capacity to big data, this frees up humans to spend more time in value-added business activities.

Build something simple

Chatbots are a cost-effective, easy-to-implement and relatively light introduction to the world of AI. These ‘conversational interfaces’ are automated programs that can hold a conversation using text or speech. By taking care of mundane, time-consuming tasks that can be automated, chatbots can take care of the 'heavy lifting' of customer interactions or data processing within an organisation. They are not reserved for use by big corporates - you’d be surprised how many small and medium-sized businesses are taking advantage of custom-built chatbots.

Meet Alfred

An example that demonstrates the capability of AI is Alfred, a chatbot we built for the Australian insurance comparator, Lifebroker. When considering the investment in this technology, Lifebroker asked itself two questions: Will a chatbot make our customers’ lives easier? And will it be profitable?

Since launching, Alfred continues to clearly tick the box on both of these questions and he is now taking care of time-consuming routine tasks that Lifebroker staff had to perform previously. He is also making a positive impact on customer engagement and retention.

A stepping stone to larger projects

This example is just one of many that demonstrate that a chatbot is a relatively easy and inexpensive way to dip your organisation's toes in the AI waters. It can deliver a new digital user experience that meets many of today’s digital consumers’ demands, no matter the size of your business.

It also opens you and your organisation up to the future possibilities of AI and shows decision-makers the return on investment that AI can offer. Common benefits include reduced operational costs, lower customer churn, improved customer experience and better staff engagement. Once you’ve experienced the benefits of AI first-hand, your business case would have been realised, adoption of AI will be well underway in your organisation and you can then consider larger projects with confidence.

What’s next?

In the next edition of our AI Series, Common AI Pitfalls (and how to avoid them), we’ll examine some AI failures and explain how you can test your ideas to ensure you’re building something worthwhile. Need a reminder on how AI works in real life? Revisit our last edition: Machine Learning for Higher Education

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Jade Software

Jade brings new ideas to life in industries including energy, insurance, agritech, and retail. With a UX-led approach to defining problems and a methodical, iterative process for solving them, we change people’s real-world experiences with whatever technology fits best.

Thousands of companies around the world rely on Jade every day of the year.

We are headquartered in Christchurch and have offices in Auckland, Dunedin, Sydney, Melbourne, and the United Kingdom.