As 5G improves the way we live and work, opportunity for communications increases on a global level. The storytelling that PR and marketing professionals will be tasked with will help educate the masses about the impact of 5G technology across industries. It's a big job, but someone has to do it! As communicators, we are responsible for highlighting how increased data, low latency and faster edge computing is going to make a tangible difference. Merritt Group put out a recent infographic detailing this topic and I'm here to dive deeper today.

Miltton Group is merging the worlds of technology, marketing and communications, and management consulting by connecting machine learning and predictive social dynamics research and talent with its existing experts and services. Miltton Group has joined forces with an international group of researchers, the emmy.network, Drawn from tech companies and research institutions like McGill and CERN, the networks members possess strong backgrounds in mathematics, theoretical physics, and computer science. The network is led by Dr. Jussi Westergren, a mathematician whose experience ranges from advising global companies like Intellectual Ventures to helping found organizations like DeepMind and academia.edu. Miltton Branch will be headed by Philip Roy, a programme manager from the emmy.network.

To stay ahead of their competitors, companies need to stay up-to-date on current communication technologies and marketing trends. Recently the spotlight has been on artificial intelligence (AI) and its potential applications. There are plenty of predictions making the rounds on how AI will be used in brand marketing and communications in the near future. Seasoned experts in the communications and marketing industry know which way the wind is blowing--many are already laying the groundwork for AI applications in their own work. Bringing their expert insights right to your proverbial door, 12 members of Forbes Communications Council share their top AI predictions, as well as how savvy marketers can get ahead of the trend.

Is voice technology going to become the next big opportunity for brands to engage with consumers? As we enter an era where voice assistants are becoming more popular (Amazon Alexa, Google Home, Apple HomePod, among others), new doors open for marketing and communications professionals. Experts say voice assistants can become the first interactive tool at home that provides brands the capability to dynamically offer up ads in the future that could be user controlled. In this interactive Master Class, we will understand voice technology as part of artificial intelligence, discuss real business examples, and conclude with a discussion on the future of this technology and the marketing field as we know it.

Algorithms are already being used to help determine who's approved for a loan, who is the best candidate for a job and which criminal is least likely to reoffend. But, how reliable are they… and what ethical considerations should be applied when using data and algorithms to target consumers? In 2015, a study at MIT suggested that an algorithm could predict someone's behaviour faster and more reliably than humans can. The Data Science Machine, created by a master's student in computer science, was able to derive predictive models from raw data automatically – without human involvement. It's fairly common for machines to analyse data, but humans are typically required to choose which data points are relevant for analysis.

Warc's'Toolkit 2017', in association with Deloitte Digital, indicates that more than half of global CMOs said they expected the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on marketing and communications to be greater than the impact of social media. Machine learning is already being applied to programmatic trading and we have seen brands such as Aviva in the UK improve its media efficiencies as a result. The report, produced in association with Deloitte Digital, brings together the best of Warc's content over the past year – the latest ideas, research and examples. The result is a guide to current thinking in each area, and the implications for marketers. Warc's'Toolkit 2017', in association with Deloitte Digital, indicates that more than half of global CMOs said they expected the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI) on marketing and communications to be greater than the impact of social media.

Weber Shandwick's report AI-Ready or Not: Artificial Intelligence here we come!, released this week, shows that top global marketers believe AI will have an even bigger impact on comms than social media. Gorkana asks Weber and other agencies, including Firefly, Hotwire PR and Babel, what they think about the AI'revolution'. According to Weber Shandwick's report, AI is defined as the following: "[AI] is a field of technology designed to create computers, machines and software that are as smart as humans, and which are able to perform the same tasks that normally require human intelligence." It surveyed 150 chief marketing officers across the UK, US and China and more than half of them (55%) expect AI to have'a greater impact on marketing and communications than social media ever had'. Nearly six in ten (58%) of respondents believe that within the next five years companies will need to compete in the AI space to succeed. Furthermore, 68% of the CMOs reported that their company is currently selling, using or planning for business in the AI area.