Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform the Irish economy. Recognising its potential, an overwhelming majority of the respondents we contacted while conducting PwC's 2019 analysis of AI in business believe it is vital that Ireland puts itself at the forefront of the AI revolution, and should invest in the skills and technology needed to adopt AI successfully. The research, conducted by PwC and the Analytics Institute, shows that the majority of Irish leaders know that AI is going to change their operations in the next five years significantly, or risk losing competitive advantage. To understand where Irish organisations currently stand on AI development and deployment, we surveyed almost a hundred executives and practitioners about their perspectives on the age of automation, and it is clear from our findings that AI needs to be demystified and woven into the change agenda of Irish organisations. Our analysis delivered some fascinating results, identifying six priorities every leader must know to implement AI in their organisation successfully. We believe a critical aspect of getting companies to face up to AI is to make it less daunting.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform the Irish economy. Recognising its potential, an overwhelming majority of the respondents we contacted while conducting PwC's 2019 analysis of AI in business believe it is vital that Ireland puts itself at the forefront of the AI revolution, and should invest in the skills and technology needed to adopt AI successfully. The research, conducted by PwC and the Analytics Institute, shows that the majority of Irish leaders know that AI is going to change their operations in the next five years significantly, or risk losing competitive advantage. To understand where Irish organisations currently stand on AI development and deployment, we surveyed almost a hundred executives and practitioners about their perspectives on the age of automation, and it is clear from our findings that AI needs to be demystified and woven into the change agenda of Irish organisations. Our analysis delivered some fascinating results, identifying six priorities every leader must know to implement AI in their organisation successfully. We believe a critical aspect of getting companies to face up to AI is to make it less daunting.

IRISH BUSINESSES ARE lagging behind when it comes to investment in artificial intelligence, according to a new report by one of the Big Four professional services firms. A survey by PwC highlights a lack of clarity among businesses on how to plan for an AI future and the challenges with accessing and re-training talent. Conducted with the Analytics Institute, PwC surveyed 100 executives and high-ranking employees at companies of mixed sizes, including firms with revenues of less than €10 million and those with revenues of more than €5 billion. This relatively small sample size covered various industries but more than 93% were outside of IT with the replies benchmarked against US data. PwC has put together six priorities that need to be addressed by industry and government in Ireland: clarity, strategy, data, skills, trust and convergence, or how AI integrates with other technologies.

Mastercard's Irish subsidiary is increasingly focused on developing products and services that are are built on so-called "deep tech" such as blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning, the company has said. Speaking to The Irish Times, Ken Moore, who lead's Mastercard's R&D initiatives globally, said the company's Dublin-based unit was moving beyond its initial focus of developing digital payments solutions to the wider group. He said the business was now looking to go beyond the hype that surrounds new technologies such as blockchain to develop "real, grounded services and products" that would be rolled out across the wider group. "This is not exploratory work for us," said Mr Moore. Mastercard, which is the second-largest payments company globally, has significantly grown its Irish business in recent years, after deciding to locate much of its research and development work in Ireland.

Artificial intelligence and human workers will be working alongside each other as coworkers and trusted advisers within two years, but companies need to create AI products that are responsible, productive members of society. That is the view of 81 per cent of Irish businesses, according to the latest report on tech trends from Accenture. The Accenture Technology Vision 2018 highlighted the use of advanced technologies such as AI, advanced analytics and the cloud could help create intelligent businesses and enable companies to integrate themselves more deeply with people's lives, changing how we work and live. But trust in the new technology was key, with 78 per cent of Irish businesses saying they would be transparent in their AI decisions to gain customer trust and confidence. Technology is reshaping large parts of society, David Kirwan, head of technology at Accenture Ireland said, comparing it to the introduction of electricity.