SAS Charts AI Future, But Doesn't Forget Analytics Past

What happens when you put a neural network in charge of a rules-based marketing automation solution? Would the AI emerge victorious, or does the human driver still have a thing or two to show the talented mimicker? It's an interesting question, to be sure, but more importantly, and it's an experiment that the folks at SAS – which still uses rules-based approaches in some of its analytics offerings -- actually ran, and the results might surprise you. "It beat our system," SAS Executive Vice President Oliver Schabenberger said during the SAS Analytics Experience conference held last week in San Diego, California. The result forced Schabenberger, who also holds the title of CTO and COO, to inquire about the cause. "Why is it the AI system works better than what our best minds can put together?" he said.