In essence, artificial intelligence (AI) is programming that allows machines to make human-like decisions without human intervention. The way these decisions are made is by analyzing patterns and learning from them (known technically as "machine learning"). By applying this learning, the AI program itself can write new rules, which, in turn, can be included in future models, allowing the learning to be refined and improved on each iteration..
An example of pattern-learning AI is Google’s AlphaGo, a program that is able to play Go, an ancient Chinese board game that is similar to chess. AlphaGo learned from the best Go players of the world and beat them at their own game.
Since AI processes large quantities of data to make decisions in real time, data must be gathered faster than it has ever been before. This is where 5G comes in. With 5G’s incredibly fast speeds (where a movie can be downloaded in six seconds versus seven minutes using 4G), the technology is set to unleash the full power of AI.
Here are but some of the latest and potential developments that could have an enormous impact in our not-too-distant future:
Health tracking of emergency responders
A partnership between IBM and Samsung has produced a platform that tracks in real time the vitals of soldiers, staff working in harsh conditions, police, firefighters, and other emergency responders. Leveraging IBM Cloud, Samsung smartwatches with biometric sensors, and Samsung 5G smartphones, the platform’s AI is able to sense critical signs — such as physical inactivity, heat exhaustion, and drops in heart rate — and dispatch medical assistance automatically.
Occupational accidents result in three million deaths each year, according to the International Labour Organization. As the platform of the two tech giants is being piloted by many police forces, they hope to prove its viability as a tool for saving lives.
Smarter road navigation, safer travels, and disrupted transportation industry
Currently, apps like Waze aggregate traffic flow data gathered by human users, which other users then use to guide their navigation decisions. While much of the information is passively collected, some of it is from active user input — reports on accidents, road blocks, police stops, and the like — which is prone to inaccuracies.
Now imagine sensor-equipped cars sharing with each other objective data such as travelling speed, hazard locations, and vehicle density via a high-speed and low-latency network like 5G. AI programs would then create optimal routes in real time to help drivers avoid traffic jams and arrive at their destinations on time.
5G would also be integral in making self-driving vehicles ubiquitous on our roads. Safety is the primary concern in letting robots drive for us, and the fifth generation mobile network would enable AI drivers to make split-second decisions that ensure the safety of passengers and pedestrians. Considering that up to four Canadians die each day due to road accidents caused by impaired drivers, such fatal crashes may become a thing of the past with 5G-enabled AI behind the wheel.
Furthermore, 5G-powered AI could dramatically alter the transportation industry as we know it. Instead of manufacturers selling automobiles to individuals, they could instead become providers of on-demand ride-sharing services. Manufacturer-owned fleets of self-driving vehicles geared for public transportation would mean that:
- Individuals and families that would buy automobiles could allocate their money elsewhere.
- Transportation would become more socially equitable as access to it increases.
- Ride sharing would reduce one-person trips, making commuting more energy-efficient.
- There would also be a positive side effect on the real estate industry once privately owned vehicles are taken out of circulation. Other than hangars where idle ride-sharing vehicles would be parked, parking spaces such as garages or car parks would no longer be necessary, allowing property owners to have more productive uses for such spaces.
Conversational AI assistants
As they are now, Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri, and Microsoft’s Cortana are still a far cry from Tony Stark’s Jarvis. Granted, both Stark and Jarvis are fictional, but science fiction is an exercise in imagination that often precedes technological innovation.
To address users’ queries, today’s electronic virtual assistants (VAs) still connect to the cloud to relay stored information. This results in slow responses that make natural-flowing conversation impossible. And if situations call for quicker responses, VAs are not yet up to the task. But with 5G and edge computing, we may have our own Jarvises sooner rather than later.
When it comes to disruptive technologies such as cloud computing, XBASE helps many businesses in Toronto and beyond to leverage these to their advantage. 5G and AI will be no different. To learn more about how we can help you capitalize on cutting-edge tech, contact us today.
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