ChatGPT pushing the evolution of AI in business in Calgary
Artificial intelligence has been in development for years, but recent advancements in generative AI, such as ChatGPT, have hit the accelerator on the technology. ChatGPT is the latest generation of generative AI created by American company OpenAI. The app has been developed to scour the internet or source material in a matter of seconds to answer questions and produce content. The possibilities of the technology are limitless.
The potential is so big that companies such as Google and Microsoft have announced investments worth billions of dollars to develop their own generative AI apps and technology to rival or surpass ChatGPT. However, there are major issues in reliability that need to be worked out.
There remains major issues over the sourcing of information by the app — if it is fabricating information or straight up plagiarizing content. This should cause any company pause before using the technology. Generative AI is at the peak of its hype. It may get hyped even further. It can be looked at like a Google search, giving the user a large list of links that may or may not be relevant. ChatGPT then assembles those links into a paragraph. What is missing from the equation is the experience to make decisions on content.
A recent KPMG survey of 250 business and technology leaders showed a low adoption of AI use in Canadian companies, with only 37 per cent of Canadian companies surveyed experimenting with ChatGPT. The difference, according to the study, comes down to a lack of skilled talent and quality data to train AI algorithms. However, this should start to change over time, especially in Calgary with record venture capital investment in the sector and emphasis on skills training through the post-secondaries.
The potential for AI in the business sector is massive. The technology can help sort through thousands of job applications, improve a company’s communications in preparing news releases and content. AI can help troubleshoot tech issues and can aid in the legal system in sifting through decades of case law. It’s a boost to the energy sector in searching for efficiencies, reducing carbon emissions and alerting companies to issues with equipment. In finance, it can help sort through credit ratings, and market pressures and disruptions. From an HR standpoint, it can be a productivity tool.
Where AI can have the biggest impact is in the health-care sector. It could be a multibillion-dollar sector in health care by 2030, and could potentially take a generational leap in service and care. It can transform health care like no other industry, according to Cory Janssen, co-founder and co-CEO of AltaML, an Alberta-based AI software development company.
However, there are some major hurdles that need to be dealt with before this transformation can take place responsibly. Improving the security of the system to prevent outside manipulation or interference is at the forefront, but so is designing the system to remove bias in data.
AltaML is headquartered in Edmonton, but also has offices in Calgary, Ottawa and Waterloo. Janssen said a key moving forward is that AI and tech development is not just a focus in Edmonton or Calgary, but a provincewide effort.
In conclusion, ChatGPT is pushing the evolution of AI in business in Calgary. With the right investments, talent and quality data, the potential of AI in the business sector can be fully realized.
