Voice assistants help people feel organized (50% agree), informed (45%), happy (37%), smart (35%), confident (31%), and free (30%). Yet, cracks begin to show when comparing satisfaction across devices. Voice assistants on smartphones have the lowest consumer satisfaction rate (38% very satisfied). These users expressed frustration with an apparent lack of understanding, reliability, and accuracy--and when compared directly to that of a standalone speaker, the differences are significant. Maturity is a factor here, as smartphones were among the earliest iterations of voice assistants years ago when the technology was still in its infancy.

Last year, a study overseen by management consultancy firm McKinsey revealed that as many as 800 million jobs could be taken by robots by 2030. Our mechanical peers are already outpacing us in certain areas, particularly anything that involves repetition and precision. But there must be some things we humans are better at – like art, for instance. This October, auctioneers at Christie's will be selling a portrait of Edmond De Belamy, a sturdy-looking man from the 18th century pictured from the waist up. He is dressed in a black coat with a white collar and wears a slightly gormless expression. To be honest with you, it is no Rembrandt.

The potential of artificial intelligence to transform the workplace is no longer the stuff of science fiction. It's a today reality that companies--and especially their executive teams and Human Resources (HR) leaders--are meeting head-on. Gone are the days of installing technology systems that served as fixed tools over a fixed lifecycle.iStock Dynamic technology innovations including machine learning and artificial intelligence are already changing the way companies operate, and redefining the very concept of work in the process. And while major technology breakthroughs that fundamentally reshape the workplace have a history of driving net job gains and improved employee satisfaction over the long term, the path is often complicated by short-term concerns or wake-me-when-it's-over inertia.

With IT infrastructure complexity at an all-time high, most enterprises fear that their IT services can't keep pace with their business requirements. Nearly three-fourths of them cite infrastructure limitations as a key hurdle in their digital transformation, according to the consulting and research firm Everest Group. Acknowledging that efforts to align the services provided by IT with business goals are far from novel, the consulting firm points to the marriage of artificial intelligence, analytics and infrastructure management as a potential solution to this perennial challenge. Everest's analysts term the combination of these three technologies "aware automation," noting that by underpinning automated systems with AI and analytics, IT infrastructures will be able to automatically adapt and reconfigure their services in response to user demands. "The trinity of analytics, automation and AI can make the infrastructure run the way business needs it to, without requiring significant oversight or bandwidth," says Ashwin Venkatesan, the Everest Group's practice director.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer just a futuristic notion--it's here now, and more and more businesses are using it to fuel efficiency, growth and innovation. How is that going to impact your career--and are you prepared to partner with the machines? Reimagining business We believe that AI will not replace human workers, but will actually augment their abilities by complementing their skills, collaborating on complex tasks and freeing them from routine or repetitive tasks through automation. When we reviewed what 1,200 businesses around the world are doing with AI, we found that the leaders in this group are, in fact, investing in this kind of human and machine collaboration to grow faster, earn more and hire more people than their competitors. They are moving toward the idea of highly flexible teams that partner humans with AI solutions as they bring voice recognition, machine learning, intelligent robotics and other kinds of AI into the organization.

For some senior-level financial executives, the term Robotic Process Automation (RPA) produces visions of a utopian finance function. For others though, the mere thought of RPA brings on a major case of agita. According to a recent study by HfS Research and KPMG LLP, 55 percent of North American enterprises are looking at new opportunities available with RPA systems. Gartner predicts that by 2020, smart machines will be a top five investment priority for more than 30 percent of CIOs. So, regardless of which camp you find yourself in, the reality is that RPA is here now and will play a significant role in the finance function of the future.

Accenture this week signaled its intention to apply computer vision and product recognition technologies more broadly by investing in Malong Technologies. Based in China, Malong Technologies has been applying computer vision technologies enabled by machine learning technologies to supply chains. But Mike Redding, managing director for Accenture Ventures, says Accenture plans to apply the artificial intelligence (AI) technologies developed by Malong Technologies to a broad range of use cases, including health care and transportation. In a recent trial for an Accenture client, the Malong AI technology achieved the same level of accuracy as human doctors in detecting cases of stroke from brain-scans, says Redding. Redding says Accenture decided to invest in Malong Technologies because the AI pioneer has been recognized by Google, Microsoft and Gartner as being the provider of one of the most advanced implementations of computer vision technologies based on AI.

U.S. insurers can unlock $7 billion in total value -- 10-15% of operating expenses -- in 18 months by using artificial intelligence to automate certain core administrative functions, according to a new study from Accenture. The savings could stem from streamlining core functions for payers across the board, including customer service, billing, enrollment, claims and quality and compliance. Automating these functions for an individual health plan would bring in $1.5 million in operating income for every 100 full-time employee by the end of next calendar year for large and small payers alike, the report concludes. In 2017, 72% of payer executives said that, within the year, AI would be among the top three strategic priorities for their organizations, according to a separate Accenture survey, adding to industry buzz around the technology's potential. The top three current areas to target for near-term value were anticipating and resolving customer questions, improving the benefits loading and design process and accelerating prior authorization and clinical review of claims.

The first management consulting firm was formed in 1886 by Arthur D. Little, with the intent of providing technical research and "management engineering" to companies. Soon after, in 1926, McKinsey & Company was founded. Since then, McKinsey, along with several other management consulting giants including BCG and Bain have grown to form a $145 billion industry that serves clients in almost every sector imaginable. As a McKinsey alum who has since developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered expert network, I am interested in examining the management consulting market in the context of our rapidly evolving information sourcing ecosystem. In an age where information is cheap, what is the role of the management consultant?

When students arrive on campus they have every intention of graduating with a degree that will help them pursue their goals. Unfortunately, many will not finish their degree, and in the US a staggering 40% will fail to complete their four-year degree in the next six years. For students, graduating successfully can have a transformational impact on their lifetime earnings and career satisfaction. For institutions, increasing retention rates improves rankings, reputations, and financials. But above all, I think there's a more fundamental reason to address retention: it's simply the right thing to do.