The Transformative Power of AI for Social Good

I’d love to help the world a little bit more but unfortunately, my brain has a limited capacity, my bank account is not bottomless, and my time is fleeting. I do my best to make a difference where I can, as many of us do, but I always wish that I could do that bit extra.

Interestingly enough, my work recruiting in the data science space is probably the biggest impact that I can make towards improving the lives of the rest of the planet.

AI is often cast as the enemy that is going to disrupt our way of life, but there is not enough emphasis placed on its potential to transform the way we live for the better.

It is natural for big business to seize upon the latest technologies as a way of enhancing their bottom line, but as the low-hanging fruit is being picked, another benefit of Artificial Intelligence is increasingly getting more press column inches.

The power of AI for social good.

So many parts of our world are still struggling with issues such as poverty, hunger, health, education, and equality. The developing world has a whole different magnitude of issues in comparison to the so-called developed world, and it is there that AI will have its biggest impact.

The combination of an accessible Internet, affordable technology, and adaptable A.I. might mean AI teachers and doctors for remote communities. Sharing national data would help farmers learn from the best practices and help village leaders make the most of their limited resources. This is merely the tip of the iceberg.

It should also be said that the developed world is far from as clean, healthy and safe as it could be. Predictive AI is already at work tackling terrorism and crime, and the healthcare industry is undergoing a revolution in how we track and treat disease. I even wonder whether AI could be brought more into the classrooms and hospital wards as shortages of teachers and medical professionals start to take hold.

If we let the machines into our lives, there is the potential for so much good.

This is a major motivation for many of the Big Cloud data science and machine learning candidates. Although there is a commercial gain, they understand that it will have a far wider and more beneficial impact on the world as a whole. Our mission on this earth is to leave it in a better place for our children and their children, and understanding the data of what is going on is the first step to finding those solutions. We can only comprehend so much, but with intelligent software on our side, there are so many unrealised insights out there, just waiting to be discovered.

What do you think would be the biggest impact of AI for social good?