Does the future finally belongs to AI?

In this article we will try to answer this question, based on our scientific and professional experience. Working in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), long before it was called so, I have seen the changes and innovations that allowed AI to emerge as the fastest growing technology of the last decades.

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Technological advances in semi-conductors (microprocessors), machine learning, and big data are the basis for the rapid evolution of AI, which has come to the forefront of our daily lives, creating new possibilities and disruptions in all areas. Starting from business to everyday life, AI is changing the way we work, communicate and create value.

AI is not just an innovation, it is a tool to increase productivity. It is used to upgrade and optimize corporate processes. It does this mainly through the automation of repetitive tasks, big data analysis and the ability to make decisions based on algorithmic processing. It can be said that AI offers a new dimension to productivity.

AI is no longer science fiction, but is in the hands of the general public, i.e. it has moved beyond the narrow circle of research and development and into the hands of everyone. The democratisation of AI is already affecting many aspects of the economy.

Starting from the information and technology sector, AI is already embedded in multiple IT applications. Data management systems, automated customer service systems (chatbots) and data analytics tools highlight AI's ability to increase efficiency and reduce errors.

Finance is one aspect of the economy that is "seeing" the benefits of AI early on. Banks and insurance companies have begun to use AI to more efficiently manage risk, predict trends and detect fraud. They are leveraging machine learning algorithms to improve the customer experience and increase productivity.

In the medical-pharmaceutical sector, AI contributes from diagnosing diseases to personalizing treatments. Tools for medical image analysis and virtual care assistants, technologies that reduce diagnosis time and increase the accuracy of treatments, have been and continue to be developed.

In the retail and customer service sector, AI has a very high level of use. AI offers customers personalized recommendations, businesses offer inventory management, while call centers adopt chatbots with realistic voices to provide immediate and efficient customer service.

The pace of AI's evolution is happening at a pace that is hard to comprehend. If we consider that as of November 2022, a little over two years ago, openAI's ChatGPT came to market, essentially creating the AI market, and by 2024 the market reached $6.5 billion with projections of $140.8 billion in 2033, we realize that AI will leave no sector of the economy and society untouched. At the same time, Google has come in strong in the space with Gemini. At the same time, platforms like X's Grok, Anthropic have entered the market with their own models. In addition to these American initiatives, from the Far East comes the open model (all users can download and use it locally without internet and subscriptions) DeepSeek, which highlights new techniques in the way of searching and analysing information. It is worth noting that large linguistic models (LLMs) are an important but not unique tool in the broader field of AI. The evolution of the fields in technology and business is not exclusively composed of LLMs, but is also driven by recent breakthroughs in deep neural networks, which improve the classification and regression of data. These innovations, combined, open up new horizons for the development of integrated solutions in many areas.

The agri-food sector with the integration of AI will optimise agricultural production through smart irrigation systems, crop monitoring and robotic harvesting. This will lead to increased productivity, while reducing losses and costs.

The move towards autonomous vehicles and drones is now a realistic scenario for the future. AI will enable the automation of distribution, optimisation of routes and time and fuel savings, radically changing the transport and logistics market.

In creative fields such as graphic design, content production and design, AI systems will act as tools to enhance creativity. Instead of replacing creators, they will provide them with new tools to develop original ideas and speed up the production process.

AI is expected to play a key role in personalising learning. Through personalised training programmes and online tools, teachers will be able to tailor lessons to the needs of each student, thus improving learning efficiency.

Public institutions and organisations will use AI to automate processes, analyse data for decision-making and provide personalised services to citizens. This will lead to a more transparent and efficient administration.

AI is not a tool to replace human resources, but a tool that enhances productivity and brings out new possibilities. Enterprises that adopt and make good use of AI technologies gain a competitive advantage by improving their processes, reducing operational costs and developing more innovative approaches.