The Impact of AI for Businesses

The introduction of ChatGPT has certainly brought the topic of Artificial Intelligence to the forefront of media and general conversation. While you might think it’s new, in reality, you’re probably using some form of AI every day. These may include spam filters for your email, voice to text features on your phone, and even sales and business forecasting software. As businesses continue to evolve, AI will become more impactful. Katie Couric hosts a show on YouTube called Think with Google and she recently sat down with James Manyika, SVP of Technology and Society at Google, to discuss the future of AI for business.

Couric asked Manyika to describe some ways AI may be most helpful to businesses right now. According to Manyika, there are various uses for AI that can be helpful. He mentions Quality Assurance, pointing out how AI is good at predicting possible flaws in production or when or why a machine may break down. He also points out how efficiencies may be gained by making something faster or using fewer resources based on the past experiences that AI is able to draw upon.

 “Those who are embracing AI seem to be gaining a competitive advantage,” states Manyika. He feels leadership needs to understand it isn’t just something for the IT department to think about. It will become part of the business’s strategy.

He encourages experimenting with the tools that are available and doing a comparison of what can be done with AI vs. without and if it makes sense to utilize it. “Some jobs will be lost simply because they can be done with automation,” says Manyika. However, he also sees jobs being gained, as AI will allow productivity to increase and companies may need to hire to keep up. “Also, AI will create new types of jobs as the technology grows and we understand more of how it can complement what we do, not replacing us, but enhancing our job performance,” explains Manyika.

Couric points out how difficult it can be for businesses to keep up as things change so rapidly. Agreeing, Manyika says the focus should be on training as jobs change. Regarding AI, says Manyika “the opportunities are tremendous, but we have to get it right.”

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