Intelligence
But let’s start at the beginning. Intelligence can be described as the ability to perceive or infer information, and to retain it as knowledge to be applied towards adaptive behaviours within an environment or context. In other words, you take a hot pan from the stove, burn your hands, and remember not to do that the next time. Artificial intelligence is the same thing you perceive or infer information and turn it into something that is potentially actionable. However, the object that does that is not a human but it’s a computer. Machine Learning learning is about the study and construction of algorithms that can learn from and make predictions on data. Applications of this technology you can find for instance in optical character recognition, speech recognition but also as embedded features into digital cameras that do not only record but also interpret what is actually in the scene. It also has to do with data analysis and creating models from the data.
Life changers
Both these technologies are changing the way we live, do business and so on. Artificial Intelligence is not per se that killer robot or HAL from Kubrick’s masterpiece 2001 A Space Odyssey. On the contrary might say, when you consider that is used to screen CT scans for early signs of lung cancer. How do you think self-driving cars are able to drive? There must be some pretty nifty Machine Learning learning Artificial Intelligence inside cars, together with tons of sensors to navigate safely through the traffic. There are of course ethical issues as this video from the New York Times describes. But driverless cars will result in less deaths experts agree even with the ethical discussions.
You, Me, Them, Everybody!
AI and Machine Learning learning are not technologies that are out of reach for you as a company. Whether it’s the API that the New York based startup Clarifai offers as to automated image recognition or from our friends at Big Blue (IBM) the API that offers access to Watson. Watson was originally developed as a question answering system able to answer questions that were asked in natural language. Its claim to fame came when it was able to beat the best jeopardy players in the world on the jeopardy game show. At this moment, the technology that powers Watson is available for integration into your workforce are failing simple way to integrate AI into your IT landscape. Its capabilities have grown from question answering to the ability to learn, see, hear, read and talk, and recommend.
API is the gateway
Looking at the capabilities of such a system can imagine that you might have a task for such Machine Learning or for other Artificial Intelligence on Machine Learning learning tools in whatever shape or form they might be. Integration, transformation and mediation are the keywords of unlocking this technology in your organization. And of course, when you want to try it out there will be a section on APIs. Because APIs are also the gateway to unlocking this kind of technologies.
One example is for instance the list of Watson APIs that you can try out for free. Making these APIs available to your development teams your organization of course requires good API management solution. A solution, and I cannot stress that enough, that is a good fit for your organization will take all the boxes as far as its features go in the area of for instance management monitoring and monetization. If you’re curious will learn what we consider key features that you should look at when selecting API management solution please check our API selection guide that you can download for free.
