{"id":3750,"date":"2019-06-18T19:07:18","date_gmt":"2019-06-18T19:07:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-ca\/industry\/blog\/?p=3750"},"modified":"2019-07-25T16:21:52","modified_gmt":"2019-07-25T16:21:52","slug":"take-the-lead-with-artificial-intelligence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.microsoft.com\/en-ca\/industry\/blog\/uncategorized\/2019\/06\/18\/take-the-lead-with-artificial-intelligence\/","title":{"rendered":"Take the lead with artificial intelligence"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Ready to take the lead with artificial intelligence? Good for you! In this post, we focus on what real-world small and medium-sized business owners and managers need to do to make their operations \u201csmarter, stronger, and faster\u201d using AI. Included are links to AI business resources from Microsoft and some inspirational reads.<\/p>\n
Artificial intelligence. This fantastical concept of teaching computers to teach themselves has transitioned from sci-fi movie and TV screens to our business lives. But never mind the cool dramatizations. What does artificial intelligence really mean? And, realistically, how can you introduce it to your business to gain competitive advantage?<\/p>\n
As a concept, Theo Van Kraay\u2014Microsoft Cloud Solution Architect (Advanced Analytics & AI), Customer Success Unit\u2014defines AI<\/a>\u00a0this way: \u201cArtificial Intelligence is the ability of a computer system to deal with ambiguity, by making predictions using previously gathered\u00a0data<\/strong>, and learning from errors in those predictions in order to generate newer, more accurate predictions about how to behave in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n Several key AI technologies-as-cloud-services imitate intelligent human behaviour. They imitate human vision through object recognition (like scanning footage). They simulate human speech through speech recognition (like Cortana in Windows 10). And they simulate human language through machine translation.<\/p>\n To bring that cognitive capacity into the field, technical teams build solutions using other revolutionary technologies and services.<\/p>\n Whoa! If this all seems a bit overwhelming, we understand. So, let\u2019s keep it real. How can a non-technical small business, like a coffee shop or a courier company, invest in AI? Can it benefit the \u201clittle guys?\u201d Should you hire AI experts, like developers and engineers? And what AI apps make sense for small businesses to invest in?<\/p>\n Technical or not, you need to get your company AI-ready. And that means learning about AI strategy, culture, responsibility, and technology. Start by visiting the\u00a0Microsoft AI Business School<\/a>.\u00a0It offers extensive online resources for business, including several free learning streams featuring videos from industry experts on how to use AI responsibly and with confidence. Learn how to:<\/p>\n If you have the technology expertise in your organization, you can jump into the deep end of AI by accessing Azure. Your team can start experimenting with machine learning, IoT, natural language cognitive services, and other transformative technologies-as-services right away.<\/p>\n Like modern magicians, technical teams can access all these technologies in a cloud platform like Azure. They can experiment, deploy, test, and learn!<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Explore the Microsoft certified solution provider network.\u00a0Find a certified AI expert near you and start the conversation about what you want or dream of doing with AI.<\/a>\u00a0Non-technical businesses and non-profits of all sizes can take part in the AI revolution in Canada by collaborating with the best technical talent available.<\/p>\n Microsoft presents the Great Canadian Innovators ebook<\/em><\/a>\u00a0profiling 10 incredible Canadian companies using artificial intelligence, machine learning, internet of things, holographic devices, and other powerful Microsoft technologies and services to innovate in their fields.\u00a0Download the Great Canadian Innovators ebook here<\/a>! href=”https:\/\/azure.microsoft.com\/en-ca\/blog\/what-is-artificial-intelligence\/”>defines AI\u00a0this way: \u201cArtificial Intelligence is the ability of a computer system to deal with ambiguity, by making predictions using previously gathered\u00a0data<\/strong>, and learning from errors in those predictions in order to generate newer, more accurate predictions about how to behave in the future.\u201dt Canadian Innovators ebook here!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ready to take the lead with artificial intelligence? Good for you! In this post, we focus on what real-world small and medium-sized business owners and managers need to do to make their operations \u201csmarter, stronger, and faster\u201d using AI. Included are links to AI business resources from Microsoft and some inspirational reads. Artificial intelligence. This<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":379,"featured_media":3753,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"_classifai_error":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"post_tag":[294],"content-type":[],"coauthors":[300],"class_list":["post-3750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-smb"],"yoast_head":"\nImitating humans<\/h2>\n
Transformative technologies<\/h2>\n
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Keeping it real<\/h2>\n
Start with strategy<\/h2>\n
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Technical readiness<\/h2>\n
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Get inspired!<\/h2>\n