How AI is changing the way we work

The coronavirus crisis has given rise to fresh concerns about automation in labour markets. With people locked down and social distancing still in place, many businesses around the world have scaled up their investment in artificial intelligence (AI). AI's ability to identify and learn from data patterns, and translate them into useful technologies, has proven to be indispensable for many organisations, from healthcare providers to delivery subscription services, for example, in responding to the pandemic. Business applications of AI over the past 12 months have ranged from those designed to increase productivity and yield, through to customer-service functions. Robots have been rolling in to sanitise UK and US hospital corridors and deliver crucial supplies such as blood samples.