• AI and Machine learning will lead to hyperautomation

According to Gartner, a market research firm anything in an organization, such as legacy business processes can be automated. The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the need for automation as many companies seek to make machines do some tasks to reduce human interaction and overcrowding in workplaces to tame the virus. AI and machine learning will become key components and major drivers of automation. Technologies such as robotic process automation will depend on the advancement of these two to move to the next level. Automated business processes with the help of machine learning and AI will be able to adapt to the changing circumstances and respond to unexpected business situations.

• AI-powered chatbots

AI-powered chatbots, sometimes known as conversational AI are gaining acceptance in many organizations. They are improving reach, responsiveness and customer experience in general due to personalization. AI-powered bots are evolving into better customer service automation. They use natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML) to understand humans and their needs and provide a near-human level communication. As a visitor of websites, you might have encountered these bots at some point in your life. As many things such as learning, shopping and customer support move to online environments, these bots will become a norm. This is likely to start as soon as 2021 due to the effects occasioned by the coronavirus.

• AI will be used in cybersecurity applications

Cybersecurity is one of the main areas of concern in the world today. As such, Artificial intelligence and Machine learning algorithms are showing some potential in tackling the ever-increasing cybersecurity challenges. As security challenges keep increasing, developers and cybersecurity professionals are engaged in a race to update their technology to keep up with highly sophisticated cyber-attacks and threats from malware, DDoS attacks and others. AI and machine learning technologies will be instrumental in identifying these threats and isolating them earlier enough.

• Increase in demand for ethical AI

The rising demand for ethics pertaining AI is at the top of the list in trends for 2021. According to Forrester, the next decade will require a strict response to digital acceleration and ethics in the management and use of AI. Although this topic has been left unattended for long, it is fast emerging as an area of concern due to biases that have emerged from AI projects. Consumers are demanding AI that is value-based and accountable. With time, companies will choose partners who are committed to ethics. This will see the adoption of data handling practices that reflect openness, transparency and accountability. There will always be questions around AI technology.

• IoT and AI will intersect

The internet of things (IoT) has been growing faster in recent years. It is expected that this industry will generate over $1.5 trillion in revenue by 2030, with over 24 billion devices in the market. With this growth, AI and ML will increasingly be intertwined with IoT. ML algorithms will be employed to make IoT devices smarter and secure. Also, the massive amounts of data generated by IoT devices will require ML and AI to decipher and generate patterns used to make critical decisions.