Artificial Intelligence has come a long way with technology companies investing heavily on Internet of Things, voice assistants, chatbots, machine-learning and other intelligent business processes. AI is one of the fastest-growing technology segment in 2017. The AI technologies have been reshaping the way organisations function, fundamentally.

AI is already disrupting traditional business models. There has been a great deal of hype around future of businesses as AI technologies continue disrupting different industries. Organisations need to take an informed approach to ensure they harness AI technologies effectively. To be able to do so, they need to understand these technologies individually and their power to change the way any business functions.

Accenture has published a report, explaining how AI technologies are shaping businesses and society. The report defines Artificial Intelligence as “information systems that can sense, comprehend and act.” AI systems are capable of learning through experience and amend their behaviour accordingly. This is truly ground-breaking since we are used to working with computer applications to behave in a set way, the way they are programmed to behave.

Technology leaders are putting this self-learning concept to innovative uses. Google’s AutoML approach allows an AI to learn to make its own, powerful AI. NASA is using Intel’s Nervana Systems to spot better landing sites on Moon. IBM Watson is providing machine learning, natural language processing and other AI technologies in the medical field. And, this is only just the beginning.

It is time for top-level executives in every industry to assess AI technologies and identify ways to use them to improve the quality of their business processes, staffing models and data assets. Disruption by AI is very real and such emerging technologies will very soon be used to drive top-line revenue growth in organisations.