Companies are doubling down on artificial intelligence and machine learning due to pandemic

Companies are planning to increase their spending on artificial intelligence and machine learning as a result of the pandemic, and IT leaders believe that those initiatives should have been a higher priority for their organizations all along, according to a newly released survey by Algorithmia, a provider of ML operations and management platforms. Algorithmia's "2020 Enterprise AI/ML Trends" survey was completed in August by over 100 IT directors and above who are involved with those initiatives and work in companies with at least $1 billion in annual sales and 5,000 or more employees, the company said. There is little doubt the events of the past six-plus months have disrupted the plans of IT organizations. In fact, 42% of IT leaders responding to Algorithmia's survey said that at least half of all their AI/ML projects were impacted from a priority, staffing, or funding standpoint because of the COVID-19 pandemic. SEE: Microsoft's new feature uses AI to make video chat less weird (TechRepublic) But that doesn't mean those projects are going away--instead, their focus may have shifted, Algorithmia said. For example, 54% of IT leaders said their projects were focused on financial analysis and consumer insight prior to the pandemic.