Artificial Intelligence or AI – technically defined as the ability of a computer or a robot controlled by a computer to do tasks that are usually done by humans because they require human intelligence and discernment – has moved away from being a computing marvel to becoming something very common. The reason for describing the term as being very common today, is not that it has lost its technological value, but simply because of its versatility. Yashraj Bhardwaj, Partner, Petonic Infotech said, "Try to think of a task that is not capable of being completed without actual human intervention and you will find yourself struggling to find one. This is especially true of organisational functioning. From mundane tasks to complicated functions, AI is being applied successfully across the board. Governments are not averse to this development too. "The all-pervasive nature of AIFrom systems for managing emails, documents, phone inquiries, and chats to managing manual and repetitive tasks that are time-consuming and which tend to result in long hours of processing delays that affect work efficiency, AI has helped organisations to improve performance efficiency.

The government's Integrated Review comes at a time of considerable technological change. The UK has entered a'Fourth Industrial Revolution' (4IR), which promises to'fundamentally alter the way we live, work, and relate to one another'. This new era will be characterised by scientific breakthroughs in fields such as the Internet of Things, Blockchain, quantum computing, fifth-generation wireless technologies (5G), robotics, and artificial intelligence (AI), which together are expected to deliver transformational changes across almost every sector of the economy. Of particular note are recent developments in AI, specifically advances in the sub-field of machine learning. Progress over the last decade has been driven by an exponential growth in computing power, coupled with increased availability of vast datasets with which to train machine learning algorithms. While machine learning technology can be traced back to at least the 1950s, investment has increased substantially in recent years, and as a result AI is rapidly becoming ubiquitous across the economy.

Organised by The Artificial Research Centre, Brunel University London, in association with the British Academy of Management (E-Business / Government, Organisational Transformation, Change and Development and Strategy SIGs) The next generations of technological development driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) are unlike anything we have seen before. Data is the fuel used to drive the development in the Big Data era. Business leaders, policy makers and the public are only just the beginning to grasp the unquenchable thirst algorithms have for data. Many human activities are already being tracked and traced using smart sensors, apps, mobile devices and wearable tech. As things we come into contact with become part of the internet of things, so our every move will generate more data about us, our behaviours, habits, preferences and displeasures.

With only 1 in 5 executives believing their incumbent team capable of developing talent to meet organisational needs, jobs in L&D are vulnerable to outsourcing and automation. How is your job impacted? It depends on the duties, responsibilities and deliverables expected from you in your current role. Bottom line: As is the case across all industries and sectors, if your role is currently focused more on producing output (i.e. Organisational competitive advantage mandates getting this critical equation right; leveraging automation where available and highly skilled, results-oriented people talent where required.

In today's world, children as young as pre-schoolers have already started using tablets while top executive education programmes boast high-tech facilities where corporate leaders can learn in new ways. We have also seen the rise of e-learning and distance learning for many university degrees, with students learning online without ever having to step into a classroom.