We all heard the hype.
But here is a question: have you ever thought about what an AI future really looks like?
For those old enough, few pondered what the Internet future would be like. Certainly there were industry people who talked about how the world would change. Of course, as with all predictions, there was a wide margin of error. We are still awaiting many of the things that were promised.
That said, nobody can argue the impact that the Internet made on society. Today, information spreads at the speed of a smartphone. Only a small portion of the population remembers how slow things use to be. Even an Internet innovation like email seems archaic.
It is pretty much agreed that AI will have a much bigger impact than the Internet. This is because the letter is serving as the delivery system for the former. With the Internet, cabling was run to connect newer users.
Now, one simply downloads an app to utilize their favorite AI service.
We are only at the beginning. How will things look in a decade?
In this article we will look at a few sectors that are likely to be completely upended.
Looking into the future is not easy. For that reason, I am going to be rather non-specific. I find the value is in trends which are easier to follow.
There are a number of industries that face complete overall. Disruption is the name of the game. Harkening back to the Internet comparison, one area we saw change was information. Suddenly, there was a new distribution system which also allowed more people to be involved in the creation. This radically altered where and how people got their news and entertainment.
One area that will parallel this is education.
Today, we are dealing with an archaic system. Like the Internet, AI is changing how information is delivered. It is also altering who (where) we get it from. This affects education since AI is capable of replacing much of what a teacher does. Certainly, there will still be a need for human engagement. However, the bulk of the learning process, i.e. curriculum, will be handled by AI.
This will disrupt the entire school system. While it will not eliminate it since there is social value in this format, the majority of the "teaching" will be done with a personal AI tutor.
The second area that we see AI making progress is with transportation. Here we deal with everything from autonomous vehicles to automating of logistical operations. The delivery of products and people will never be the same.
It is still a human-led process. Over the next few years, this will shift. Most logistical operations are automated with the next step for AI to fully take over. It is already present in fields such as network administration. Incorporating the real world is what the focus will be over the rest of the decade.
Everything will be smart. Actually, that doesn't encompass what will take place.
Smart typically means connected. In other words, there is a chip in the products which captures and provides data.
When it comes to health, wearables will end up being the norm. We are going to have built in health monitoring devices. What the products look like still is being fought over. Nevertheless, our health is going to be driven by AI.
Human doctors have too many flaws. They simply cannot keep up. Also, they are prone to errors.
AI will replace this. Our bodies will be continually scanned for different things, with alerts given anytime something dangerous arises. We also will have the benefit of getting real time suggestions such as not eating that ice cream since our blood sugar for that day is too high.
This will extend to our homes.
All of our devices will be connected. Again, this harkens back to a concept from 10 years ago of "Big Data". That term is not used much anymore since we arrived there long ago.
The next step is personalized data. We already have a ton of data available. The key is to personalize it.
When it comes to our home, this is much more than just security monitoring. We are looking at our health being tied to what happens in our kitchen. Food preparation will be aligned with that.
At the same time, everything in our refrigerator will be monitored. Certain recipes will not be served up if a key component is missing. The AI system will be aware of what is available.
In time, we will likely get in home robots. Those could be down the road a bit more so we will omit them from the conversation.
One key is that AI is going to start making real world access. Even though it is still in the infancy stage online, the spread will be quick. Everything that rolls out in the next 5 years will be AI enabled.
