IBM expert on challenges of implementing AI: Provide right education, create impactful products

When talking about artificial intelligence (AI), we mainly mean the automation of work, repetitive tasks. Today there are many processes that still require a lot of human resources to perform, and this is exactly the issue that they are trying to solve with the help of artificial intelligence, says AI and Data Expert and Cognitive Solution Architect at IBM, Kim Dressendoerfer, with whom NEWS.am Tech spoke within the framework of the Global Innovation Forum 2022 in Yerevan.

"This is exactly what has been happening in this industry in recent years: artificial intelligence is being used to automate such processes as much as possible," she says.

Trends in artificial intelligence

According to the specialist, if we talk about the current trends in the field of artificial intelligence, the main trend is to combine all the available data and create a new hypothesis through a new prediction chain.

"For example, what will happen when we combine textual data with images and structured data? We have not analyzed the films, texts, living language, etc. that much. If we look ahead to the possibilities, then we can have quite complex solutions based on artificial intelligence, through which it will be possible to perform complex tasks and do our work better and more efficiently," she says.

What are the challenges of using AI?

According to Dressendoerfer, one of the main challenges related to the use of artificial intelligence today is fear. Many people have this fear of what artificial intelligence is, how it can be used, etc. According to her, the media also play an important role here, in particular, how they present it.

"I think there is a fear, a prejudice when talking about artificial intelligence. But I can say with certainty that we are very far from what Arnold Schwarzenegger was trying to present in his films [she laughs - ed.]; that will not happen," she says.

And the biggest challenge, according to her, is education. It is important to give people the right education so that a person can move forward in line with the changes taking place in the world; there is no other way.

"I don't know how it is done in Armenia, but I can say that the school education system in Germany has not changed in the last 17 years; the same books and the same topics. But the world has changed," she says.

As per Dressendoerfer, due to the need to acquire new knowledge and new technologies, almost every two years, people should try to see the patterns, values or actions that no longer serve them and replace them with better options.

"If we don't teach it in schools, if we don't tell the generations that this is how life will be, it will be very difficult for them later. On the other hand, there will be tasks that are repetitive and should be removed from the domain of artificial intelligence, we must be sure that the voice of the next generation will also be heard and they will be able to do their work properly," she says.

What should Armenian AI companies pay attention to?

The IBM artificial intelligence and data expert is visiting Armenia for the first time and does not know much about the IT ecosystem here. However, a day or two was enough to understand that here a huge attention is paid to innovations, and many companies try not to miss the opportunity to be on the wave of innovation, and for this they pay great attention to attracting talented personnel and giving their tasks innovative solutions that have not been done before.

 

When asked what advice she would give to Armenian companies engaged in AI, Kim Dressendoerfer says that they should create solutions that have an impact and are highly innovative, and investments should be made.

"If a country wants to have a leading position in the field of technology, it should invest in order to find solutions. It is a long process; it takes years to find any solution based on artificial intelligence. Consistent work should be done there, attention should be focused on talented personnel who create these solutions," she says.