Year of the machines: 2017 will be breakthrough year for machine learning

According to Deloitte's Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) predictions, more than 300m smartphones – or more than one-fifth of phones sold globally in 2017 – will come with machine learning capabilities. But in addition to smartphones, other mobile devices will be able to perform machine learning tasks even without connectivity. Machine learning capabilities are forecast to arrive in tens of millions of drones, tablets, cars, VR or AR devices, medical tools, internet of things (IoT) devices and unforeseen new technologies. "Machine learning is fascinating as it will revolutionise how we conduct simple tasks like translating content, but it also has major security and health consequences that can improve societies around the world," said Richard Howard, TMT partner at Deloitte Ireland. "For example, mobile machine learning is a strong entry point to improve responses to disaster relief, help save lives with autonomous vehicles and even turn the tide against the growing wave of cyberattacks."