"You can't get good insights from bad data, and AI is playing an instrumental role in the data preparation renaissance."–Narendra I have interviewed Narendra Mulani, chief analytics officer, Accenture Analytics. What is the role of Artificial Intelligence in analytics? Narendra Mulani: Artificial Intelligence will be the single greatest change driver of our age. Combined with analytics, it's redefining what's possible by unlocking new value from data, changing the way we interact with each other and technology, and improving the way we make decisions.

Companies across industries are experimenting with and using machine learning, but the actual adoption rates are lower than it might be seem. According to a 2017 SAP Digital Transformation Study, fewer than 10% of 3,100 executives from small, medium and large companies said their organizations were investing in machine learning. That will change dramatically in the coming years, according to a new Deloitte report, because researchers and vendors are making progress in five key areas that may make machine learning more practical for businesses of all sizes. There is a lot of debate about whether data scientists will or won't be automated out of a job. It turns out that machines are far better at doing rote tasks faster and more reliably than humans, such as data wrangling.

You can't understand AI until you know the categories: robotic process automation, cognitive augmentation and cognitive automation.

Advances in AI and automation has been making the mainstream news as of late. It's not just Filipinos or Mexicans taking white people's jobs, our robot overlords are taking over the playing field too. I mean, the former is a joke but the latter is true. AI and automation will soon actually displace many people in the workforce. Think of it like when the first automobile was invented.

Accenture Nigeria said its investments in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR), robotics and blockchain technology capabilities will help businesses across various sectors boost their productivity and efficiency through innovations. The management consulting and professional services giant said technology will continue to evolve. Speaking with reporters after a demo at its Lagos office at the weekend, its Managing Director Mr. Niyi Tayo, said earlier in the year, the firm had predicted that many consumers and enterprise clients will depend on AI to select products. He said: "Early this year, we predicted that in five years, more than half of consumers and enterprise clients will select products and services based on a company's AI, instead of the company's traditional brand. And in seven years, most interfaces will not have a screen and will be integrated into daily tasks. These two predictions alone strongly suggest that companies must act now on developing their AI Journey. "We want businesses in Nigeria – from banking to manufacturing, health, construction, education, retail, security, and other sectors to take advantage of the innovations we have created to improve their businesses.

Artificial intelligence (AI), once a topic only explored in science fiction movies, TV shows, and books, is something that has quickly become a part of the world of today. In 1969, management consulting firm McKinsey & Company released an article claiming that computers were not smart enough to make any decisions, but rather the human's intelligence behind the devices was powering them. With modern computers replacing skilled human labor in such fields as medicine, agriculture, and education, it is fascinating to see how incorrect this claim turned out to be. Some may even argue that artificial intelligence is the way of the future. With buzzwords like "artificial intelligence," "machine learning," and "bots" being tossed around, sometimes incorrectly interchangeably, it can be confusing to keep up with what is going on in this booming industry.

PALO ALTO, Calif., December 11, 2017 -- Cloudera, Inc., (NYSE: CLDR), the modern platform for machine learning and analytics optimized for the cloud, announced its ranking as one of the fastest growing companies in North America on Deloitte's Technology Fast 500 . "We continue to demonstrate sustained growth and penetration in machine learning and analytics, as we add more solutions for the cloud by developing innovative technology that gives our enterprise customers the solutions they need in the age of digital transformation," said Tom Reilly, chief executive officer at Cloudera. "An example of this focus on innovation is our acquisition earlier this year of a recognized leader in machine learning applied research, development, and solutions, Fast Forward Labs." In addition to the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 recognition, Cloudera has won multiple awards this year including Datanami Editors' Choice Award, IoT & Innovation Award, Big Data 50 award, and 2017 Stratus Award, to name a few. Awardees of the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 are selected for this honor based on percentage fiscal year revenue growth from 2013 to 2016.

Tenured professors are being offered 3X their salaries to leave academia and join leading AI companies including Google. Demand for Ph.D-level expertise in AI continues to fuel academic recruiting efforts globally. It's becoming increasingly common for any of the leading AI companies to sponsor global conferences where the primary goal is to meet leading academicians, patent-producing researchers, and AI experts with Ph.D backgrounds. A recent New York Times article, Tech Giants Are Paying Huge Salaries for Scarce A.I. Talent provides insights into how competitive it is to find AI expertise today including a glimpse into the salary bidding wars that go on for academicians with proven expertise in the field. CEOs of AI companies most skilled keeping innovation moving at quick, high-intensity pace that keeps top talent challenged while keeping the core business growing are getting the highest approval ratings.

Learn about the artificial intelligence advances that will have the most impact. Artificial intelligence is front and center, with business and government leaders pondering the right moves. But what's happening in the lab, where discoveries by academic and corporate researchers will set AI's course for the coming year and beyond? Our own team of researchers from PwC's AI Accelerator has homed in on the leading developments both technologists and business leaders should watch closely. Here's what they are and why they matter.

LAS VEGAS & LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Accenture (NYSE:ACN) has completed a pilot program that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and the ease of voice to help older people manage the daunting challenges of navigating their care delivery and well-being. The Accenture Liquid Studio in London developed an AI-powered platform (the Accenture Platform) that can learn user behaviors and preferences and suggest activities to support the overall physical and mental health of individuals ages 70 and older. The Accenture platform, which runs on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud, includes a'Family and Carer' portal that lets family and caregivers check on the individual's daily activities, such as whether they have taken their medication or made new requests for caregivers. The Accenture platform can also spot abnormalities in behavior and alert family or friends, based on user defined permissions. Other services provided by the Accenture platform helped participants find local events as well as potential new friends, encouraging them to become more active and social.