Antony Bourne, President, IFS Global Industry predicts that a new generation of point AI solutions, building new trust, urgency and understanding of what ‘AI’ actually is and how much it can deliver, will prove themselves in 2019. As companies advance their Robotic Process Automation, he anticipates that smart warehouses will experience a major competitive edge due to pick-and-place robots.
AI is a collection of targeted technologies, with its own strengths and applications, sharing a high degree of accuracy and an incredibly fast, smart ability to learn from their mistakes.
Bourne predicts that 50 percent of all manufacturing will be using AI in some form by the end of 2021. Targeted AI solutions are already present in many businesses. This year, the new AI realism will expand, with innovative new targeted, project-based AI solutions.
According to Bourne, 25 percent of manufacturing planners will be talking to their systems by the end of 2020. A recent major AI customer survey has discovered that two thirds of people who said they have never used AI has actually used them through chatbots, whose high quality ensures that they are indistinguishable from human speech.
In 2018, BMW went on to integrate Alexa into its models, adding layers of service and performance capability to the driving experience. The automotive sector is already using voice-activated solutions on the productive sector
In his third key prediction for manufacturing for 2019, Bourne states that pick-and-place robots will put away 25 percent of manufactured goods by the end of 2020. For decades, robots on the production line have been vital. However, when Amazon initiated their smart warehouses with swift, inexhaustible robots, it was discovered that robots increased the performance and savings levels. The utilization of robots will ensure that 24-hour, black-box warehouses will be able to store and do more without the need for expansion.
AI is also undergoing a similar transition; small, targeted uses cases keep getting bigger. IFS, for example, is currently working with one of its clients in North America to extend their use of robotics from loading boxes to complete material handling. IFS is collaborating with innovative partner companies that are beginning to work with automated warehouses.
Bourne states that 2019 will see the technologies in all these predictions gaining traction across the sector, more targeted and project-driven, and achieving small, concreted improvements that will lead to big changes. By taking the right, small steps, companies will be able to each new heights in 2019 with the utilization of AI.
