For all of the talk about disruptive innovation and new technologies in our digital-first world, one of the most promising mega-trends is artificial intelligence ("AI"). AI sounds almost too good to be true, yet it is already showing signs of truly transforming the way that we work and play. But while AI generates so much discussion in the tech and business world these days, much of the discussion is vague or uninformed. It is easy for the general public to hear some mention or reference to AI and think of a superhuman thinking machine that will take over the world or disruptive technology that is going to cost them their jobs. The simple reality is that the impact of AI is much more nuanced than that.

So what are the "megatrends" in this evolving job market? Tim Baxter, president and COO of Samsung Electronics America, speaks during a press event for CES 2017 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center on January 4, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Most of the jobs created in advanced economies don't offer permanent contracts, but involve self-employed or freelance consultants. This means that these people have no social "safety nets" like insurance, medical coverage, social security, or paid vacation. In the U.S., 94% of the new jobs created from 2005 to 2015 fell into this category, giving these workers no protection at all.

To paraphrase George Orwell's quote from Animal Farm, "All technologies are equal, but some technologies are more equal than others." It used to be common to say that "technology is marching forward, improving business and society." But today, it would be more accurate to say that technology is sprinting forward – with progress at breakneck speed and breakthroughs happening in multiple fields on a regular basis. There are so many technologies – some new, some just emerging – that is it virtually impossible to track the progress of all of them, let alone explore all their implications. This may put insurers in an uncomfortable position.

Decisions made by AIs can sometimes be hard for humans to understand. This is because they are capable of assessing a large number of variables independently of each other and "learning" which ones are important to the overall task it is trying to achieve. As an example, AI algorithms are expected to increasingly be used in making decisions about whether financial transactions are fraudulent, and should be blocked or investigated. For some time though, it will still be necessary to have these decisions audited for accuracy by humans. And given the huge amount of data that can be taken into consideration, this can be a complex task.

Previously I have written about the reality and potential of ongoing efforts to integrate blockchain with the internet of things (IoT). Now I am going to look at how encrypted, distributed ledgers could unlock new frontiers for another cutting-edge technology: artificial intelligence (AI). AI, as the term is most often used today is, simply put, the theory and practice of building machines capable of performing tasks that seem to require intelligence. Currently, cutting-edge technologies striving to make this a reality include machine learning, artificial neural networks and deep learning. Meanwhile, blockchain is essentially a new filing system for digital information, which stores data in an encrypted, distributed ledger format.

Previously I have written about the reality and potential of ongoing efforts to integrate blockchain with internet of things (IoT). Now I am going to look at how encrypted, distributed ledgers could unlock new frontiers for another cutting-edge technology: artificial intelligence (AI). AI, as the term is most often used today is, simply put, the theory and practice of building machines capable of performing tasks that seem to require intelligence. Currently, cutting-edge technologies striving to make this a reality include machine learning, artificial neural networks and deep learning. Meanwhile, blockchain is essentially a new filing system for digital information, which stores data in an encrypted, distributed ledger format.

Previously I have written about the reality and potential of ongoing efforts to integrate blockchain with internet of things (IoT). Now I am going to look at how encrypted, distributed ledgers could unlock new frontiers for another cutting-edge technology: artificial intelligence (AI). AI, as the term is most often used today is, simply put, the theory and practice of building machines capable of performing tasks that seem to require intelligence. Currently, cutting-edge technologies striving to make this a reality include machine learning, artificial neural networks and deep learning. Meanwhile, blockchain is essentially a new filing system for digital information, which stores data in an encrypted, distributed ledger format.