The AI Technology Stack Powering Autonomous Machines & Services – Think with Bessemer Venture Partners

Vertical markets such as the automotive, agriculture and healthcare have long been impervious, if not indifferent to many of the new technology trends sweeping the corporate business world. The absence of early adopters, the dependence on proprietary technology systems, and uncomfortably low product margins made these markets unappealing to cutting edge technology providers that could have transformed them. While each of these vertical markets is distinct, the rise of autonomous machines and services, which perform activities much more efficiently than humans ever could, will disrupt the current way of business in all markets whether on the road, in the field or in the hospital. Autonomous software based on advanced neural networks and deep learning will rapidly find its way into existing business and consumer products, but its potential to catapult traditional vertical industries into the 21 century is what has us most excited. Rather than resist the inevitable, previously conservative market players in non-tech verticals are beginning to engage with startups to be among the first to leverage the promise of autonomous technology.