For starters, we won't go on about what Artificial Intelligence is. You should know that by now. After all, AI has been with us for some time. In fact, the term 'Artificial Intelligence' was first coined way back in 1956 at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire.

What we will talk about however, and is more recent, is AI-as-a-Service. The things that made AI so difficult to implement in its modern settings were simply down to the fact that it was an emerging technology that had many 'moving parts' to get the best out of it. These include:

  • A lot of computing power: This meant computers were big and needed a lot of power, hence making them very expensive to run
  • Developers were in short supply: Trying to find a competent AI programmer was a challenge, as well as being expensive
  • Data curation and analysis: Today there's a lot of data. And it needs analysing. When data was 'scarcer' there wasn't a real need for businesses to dive into it.  Now, with so many touchpoints, data analysis, which includes predictive analytics, is essential.

Welcoming AI-as-a-Service

The term 'as-a-Service' refers to any software that's available through a cloud platform. It means that businesses can pick off-the-shelf AI software, make adjustments and use it pretty much straight away.

AI-as-a-Service makes Artificial Intelligence ‘easy’. Although a relatively new concept, AIaaS makes AI attainable.

Any business can potentially use the power of AI for managing customer data, getting better insights, having better search capabilities, automation (and hyperautomation) and improving the customer experience - at a cost effective price.

Types of AIaaS platforms

  • Bots: Commonly known as chatbots, they use Natural Language Processing (NPL) algorithms to mimic human speech and interactions. We’ve all seen them. They're mainly used for customer service. Chatbots save money on 'human' resources, allowing people to focus on more complex tasks
  • APIs: An Application Programme Interface (API) acts as the 'middle-man' when connecting technologies. AI allows API technologies to have better communications with one another, speeding up the flow of data between systems
  • Machine Learning: AI algorithms can be used to splice through data, find patterns and provide insights about user behaviour and even predict future behaviours
  • Labelling and classifying data: Annotating a lot of data can only be a good thing.  With the amount of data being collected by businesses, having an AI tool that organises it based on size, quality and even category is a massive time saver
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What are the benefits of AIaaS?

Efficiency is the overriding benefit of AIaaS. But let's break that down some more into 6 areas:

  1. No need for advanced tech skills
  2. Improved infrastructure
  3. Pay for usage
  4. Usability
  5. Scalability
  6. Saves money

1. No need for advanced tech skills

The beauty of AIaaS is that you don't need an AI programmer to have access to its benefits. Because the tools are off-the-shelf, all the groundwork has already been done. Granted there may be some complexity in getting it configured and implemented but it's very close to a plug-and-play solution.

2. Improved infrastructure

As mentioned, powerful, large and expensive computers are no longer needed to have AI as part of your business infrastructure. As AIaaS is customisable to your needs, it offers all sized businesses the opportunity to build intelligent systems on top of what they currently have, streamlining them in the process.

3. Pay for usage

AIaaS allows you to pay for what you use. Because Machine Learning needs a lot of computing power it's important you know what you're paying for. As with any 'as-a-service’ product you can see usage plans and buy according to your budget.

4. Usability

AIaaS software is ready to use. You’ll obviously need some guidance on how the software works and how to access its features, but overall AIaaS platforms are user friendly and offer users excellent usability with pre-built and custom models, as well as intuitive drag-and-drop interfaces.

5. Scalability

Scaling your business infrastructure is vital to staying relevant. AIaaS offers excellent scalability. It's built for it. You can 'train' your AI platform to identify trends and act on them accordingly, for instance filtering email enquiries.

6. Saves money

By using AIaaS there will undoubtedly be some long term savings and quicker return on investments. Obviously it’s dependant on how well the software is and how it’s used, but it’s safe to say that many businesses could gain positive ROI over time in less time.

Working with Codehouse

With over 15 years experience in digital, we're perfectly placed to advise you on the benefits of atomic design so you can deliver exceptional experiences to your audience. AIaaS solutions will only improve over time and so will the benefits that come with them. If you want to talk about your digital project, get in touch when you’re ready to speak to our digital experience specialists.