4 Steps to Adopting Artificial Intelligence in Your Business

Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies are seen as the future of business. Many organizations and industries are investing heavily in AI to lead their next generation of products and services.

As a business leader, you will be able to leverage the power of AI from several different angles. Here’s an infographic that outlines ten steps toward adopting artificial intelligence in your business:

1. Create a Vision for AI within Your Organization

AI is still new for many businesses, and there may be some hesitation about how it should fit into your company’s objectives or how it will affect the way things are done currently. To help overcome this challenge, take time to create a vision for how AI could contribute to your organization’s success when executed correctly:

• What do you hope to achieve?
• How will AI help achieve your goals?
•  Who will be a part of this initiative?

From this vision and the other questions outlined in the diagram, you can be clearer about what you need to do next.

2. Decide on How You Want to Use AI Within Your Organization

AI has several regions of focus: from software that helps big data and predictive analytics, to machine learning and deep learning. Be clear on which technologies will work best for your unique goals:

Big Data & Predictive Analytics: Do you need artificial intelligence to help you find insights in the data that is already available or are there ways for AI to help with finding better ways of collecting and analyzing data in the first place? For example, identifying customer sentiment or helping with fraud detection.

Machine Learning & Deep Learning: Does it make sense for artificial intelligence technologies to learn things on their own or are there areas where it makes more sense to specifically program the AI? For example, a business could use machine learning to predict when someone is going to churn or use deep learning for optimizing the web experience.

3. Know What Work Will Need to Be Done

AI is built on top of all other technologies, so before you plan to implement artificial intelligence, you'll need to have a strong foundation of existing technology in place, including:

Data: Is all your data accessible? Is it clean and consistent? Can it be leveraged for optimal results? The better your data is prepared for artificial intelligence, the more efficient and impactful it will be.

Hardware: Are there specific hardware needs that need to be considered before you get started with AI implementation? For example, if you're thinking about adding speech recognition or image recognition capabilities, you'll need computers that can handle it. Be sure not to forget about this step in your planning process!

Software: Do your AI needs fit with your existing software framework? If not, will it take a lot of time and effort to integrate the two?

4. Find Out What You'll Need for Your Project

If you've determined that AI is the right fit for your business or organization, it's time to start putting together a plan. This will depend on your specific goals and overall project scope. But before you do so, remember these key considerations:

Cost: While some organizations may be able to justify the upfront costs of developing AI technology, many others will not be able to do so without a clear ROI. Make sure that you understand exactly how much money and resources will go into your project before you get started!

Goals: Before you put together an actual timeline, know what success looks like! What are you trying to accomplish with this endeavor? It is helpful to think about how artificial intelligence can help achieve these goals, as well as how much time and effort each individual step could take. In many cases, you will be able to easily predict the time and money this will cost you.

The Way Forward

While artificial intelligence has the potential to make our lives easier, it also brings some major questions about privacy, security, ethics, and more.

If your company is looking to incorporate AI into your technology stack and aren't quite sure where to start, contact a knowledgeable advisor today. Whether it's a CTO or an experienced software engineer who works closely with AI technology on a daily basis — these experts can help you find success with your new endeavor!