Are you 4IR Ready?
The Fourth Industrial Revolution is an unstoppable force that will have a profound impact on the world. 4IR is set to influence every conceivable aspect of business and life in general. Technologies driving The Fourth Industrial Revolution include Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, Biotechnology, Robotics, Internet of Things, Blockchain, speedy connectivity in the form of 5G and Wi-Fi 6, 3-D printing. Drones, Augmented Reality, Virtual reality, etc.
For some people, these concepts are still alien. But it’s becoming clear that to avoid obsolescence and remain relevant in the modern world, one will have to become conversant and comfortable with cutting-edge technologies such as AI - Machine Learning, Deep Learning, IoT, AR, etc. These are terms that have become synonymous with the modern era. Properly understanding these technologies will help put into perspective how some of the world’s most cutting edge tech will impact your own life.
Let's take a look at AI with some of it's components:
What is Artificial Intelligence?
As defined in my new book titled Disrupt Yourself Or Be Disrupted, Artificial Intelligence is an area of computer science with the ability to solve problems that are usually done by humans. AI refers to intelligent machines that have been programmed to mimic human action and rational thinking. Machines exhibiting characteristics we associate with intelligence in human behaviour – understanding language, learning, reasoning, solving problems, and so on. According to Andrew Kucheriavy, Founder and CEO of Intechnic, “AI learns through machine learning, similar to you and me, by learning from its own mistakes, studying examples and applying the acquired knowledge over time.”
What is Machine Learning?
Machine Learning is a subset of AI and Deep Learning is a subset of Machine Learning. In machine learning, algorithms created by human programmers are responsible for parsing, learning from the data and making decisions based on what they've learned from the data. The intention of Machine Learning is to enable machines to learn by themselves using the data "provided" and making accurate predictions.
What is Deep Learning?
Deep Learning on the other hand represents the evolution of machine learning. Deep Learning learns through an artificial neural network that acts very much like a human brain. Deep learning machines don't require a human programmer to tell them what to do with the data. It recognizes patterns through data, and proceed to make an accurate decision. Deep Learning can "automatically" discover features to be used for classification but Machine Learning requires these features to be "provided" manually.
How is Deep Learning Already being Applied in the World?
One of the greatest feats of deep learning is the ability to identify images and generate intelligent captions for them. In fact, image caption generation powered by AI is so accurate that many online publications are already making use of such techniques to save time and cost.
Robo-journalists riding on deep learning models have been producing accurate match reports for some time now. Machines now have the power to generate new text from the scratch. They can learn the punctuation, grammar, and style of a piece of text and pen down effective news pieces.
Self-driving cars are some of the hottest areas of deep learning. Some deep-learning models specialize in streets signs while others are trained to recognize pedestrians. As a car navigates down the road, it can be informed by up to millions of individual AI models that allow the car to act and make decisions. And that's why many have considered self-driving cars to be safer than human drivers.
Self- driving cars will be without a doubt the standard way of transportation in the future. Major companies from Uber and Google to Toyota and General Motors are willing to spend millions of dollars to make them a reality, as the future market is predicted to worth trillions.What a time to be alive!
In regards to 4IR, my mentor Dr Strive Masiyiwa said, "Don't focus on the threats, focus on the opportunities".
Personally, I believe technology is putting more power in the hands of today's youths than any other generation.
My new Book “Disrupt Yourself Or Be Disrupted” is a tool for you to empower and equip yourself for The Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Buy on Amazon Today!
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Nicky Verd is a 4IR Consultant, Keynote Speaker
and a leading thinker on driving innovation and digital transformation
through personal disruption. She is a voice for those who yearn to
upskill, reinvent and recreate themselves.
She is also a Brand Ambassador for Southern Africa Startup Awards and a Huffington Post Contributor.
Visit her Website for more info about her work and services
Follow her on Social Media:
She is also a Brand Ambassador for Southern Africa Startup Awards and a Huffington Post Contributor.
Visit her Website for more info about her work and services
Follow her on Social Media:
"You owe yourself everything you expect from others"
