What a time to be alive! It’s two decades into the 21st Century, and concepts that were once confined to sci-fi movies are now reality. In particular, applications of artificial intelligence has made huge leaps in recent years, transforming from a rule-based automation to become the single most impactful technology in a lifetime. Let’s look at some of the most important applications of artificial intelligence in business today:

  • Fraud detection: Artificial intelligence is helping banks and other institutions catch fraudulent activity. Here, an AI platform is first fed with a large data sample that includes both legitimate and illicit transactions. It then compares the two over time, eventually becoming highly adept at singling out fraudulent transactions based on what it has learned.
  • Cybersecurity: AI’s fraud-detection capability has seen it become a key component of IT security. Machine learning algorithms are being used to monitor user behavior, detect anomalies, and even respond to threats in some cases.
  • Product recommendations: Online stores are leveraging AI’s effectiveness at cross-referencing data to help shoppers find what they want. AI platforms organize products based on features and by taking cues from past searches. This makes it easier to find the right options for all preferences and budget ranges. The program could further suggest complementary products — like say, a case that one might want for a particular phone model — to enhance the customer’s overall experience.
  • Customer support: With AI chatbots now fully capable of understanding human conversation, businesses are increasingly using them to offer customer support. They’re typically paired with databases where they can fetch answers for certain queries. In other instances, the chatbot will direct a caller elsewhere for further support. This way, customers get their problems sorted out speedily, and human support reps are able to focus on the more-complicated issues.
  • Logistics: Nowhere is artificial intelligence making as big a difference as it is in supply chain operations. Amazon recently rolled out AI-powered robots for boxing orders prior to shipment. Not to be left behind, smaller players are using AI platforms to facilitate predictive demand. Here, everything from inventory to fleets is organized based on customer data and analytics. This not only helps merchandisers become more proactive, but also makes for a smoother shopping experience.

Autonomous motoring, when it does come to fruition, will herald a new era of 24/7 deliveries — and hence the demise of the term “business days.” That’ll take a while, needless to say. But it’s just one of the numerous possibilities that AI promises.