Take heart, writers. Artificial intelligence lacks a vital storytelling component: empathy
Software can string words together, but it can’t draw people together with a tug at the heartstrings. AI and machine learning can, however, help with all that tedious research.
Many workers worry that artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) will take their jobs, leaving them out in the cold while robots take over the world.
There’s some cause for concern: self-driving cars, augmented and virtual reality, and chat bots handling customer service.
Analyst firm Forrester predicts that AI will replace 16 percent of jobs in the United States by 2025, and PricewaterhouseCoopers forecasts that AI will take over 30 percent of U.K. jobs.
Where will AI and ML stop? The answer isn’t clearly defined. Scientists, engineers and programmers are continually finding innovative uses for AI, usually deriving from a need for a specific fix, such as a way to reduce combat casualties. Voilà: drones.
Businesses base everyday decisions on big data. AI and ML are ideal for crunching data and predicting results; algorithms’ processing power makes complex computational tasks easier.
AI and ML are great at automating repetitive tasks and making objective decisions. Beyond that, they stumble. For example, seasoned mathematicians lag computers in solving complex math problems, yet in a 2012 experiment a preschooler significantly outperformed a supercomputer in recognizing a cat in a photo.
How AI and ML can help writers
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