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Significant breakthrough in research and development into Artificial Intelligence (AI) announced by Google.

Last week, Google announced that it had made a significant breakthrough in its research and development into Artificial Intelligence (AI). The story of the Google’s DeepMind AI technology beating the professional champion player of the Chinese game Go, not just once but five times, has been heralded as a significant moment in the journey towards the emergence of AI technologies. With other companies such as Facebook and IBM also investing in research into AI perhaps we are one step closer to a world where decisions that impact the way we work, live and shop may be made autonomously by computers based on data. While AI was just something you might see in a Hollywood movie, the reality is that this future may be closer than we all imagine.

As we all know today the volume of data being created is increasingly significantly and the future convergence between big data, the Internet of things and data analytics will see the amount of data being collected, processed and managed continue to rise to an unimaginable scale. It is expected that organisations will look to adopt automated data processing technologies as well as predictive data analytics, machine learning and perhaps AI, to not only manage this sheer volume of data but also to unlock the knowledge and insight hidden in data to develop innovative and personalised goods and services consumers need and want. The role and importance of data to the continued development of the UK digital economy is clear. However, this possible next stage of our digital development and the emergence of AI technologies could not only open up new opportunities but also questions about the increasing role of data that will need to be discussed perhaps in the near future.

At this point in our digital evolution, techUK believes now is the time to consider the opportunities and possible implications of the future of Big Data, Data Analytics and AI related technologies. In June, as part of techUK’s Big Data week, techUK will be bringing together industry leaders in big data, deep machine learning, cognitive learning and AI to discuss the technological innovations happening in the UK and the opportunities and benefits to be gained from the development of these technologies. Members interested in hearing more about this event or would like to explore how to get involved in supporting techUK’s Big Data week’s activities should contact Sue Daley.