Artificial intelligence (AI) is a term that has been around since the mid-1950s1. Many science fiction films have portrayed AI as a human-like ability to reason and create. However, today’s reality of AI refers to machines that can learn by being fed vast amounts of information and using algorithms to determine patterns, scenarios, and anomalies.
With AI, organisations can automate processes by outsourcing basic decision-making. The AI uses big data to determine the best course of action, then implements those decisions accordingly. Big online retailers have been using this technology for a while to provide recommendations based on what you just purchased or searched. And, more often than not, when you interact with a brand on their website via instant chat, you’re actually talking to an AI-enabled robot instead of a person.
So, what does AI have to do with content management?
AI can help organise, manage, and search content. And, unlike most content management systems (CMS), AI thrives on more data and content, not less.
By tagging content via metadata, you can apply AI to automatically find that content again later. This means it no longer matters so much where you store the content but what that content is.
For example, an AI system can analyse the content in emails and documents to determine its nature . Then, when you’re searching for the content you need, the system will surface those relevant documents based on how they were categorised by the AI.
The growing importance of managing content effectively
Managing content more effectively has never been more important. Governments around the world are focusing on increasing privacy and security for their citizens. This has led to the rise of legislation requiring companies to apply specific governance to their content management.
Australia’s mandatory notifiable data breach (NDB) scheme and Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) are both recent examples of this type of legislation. GDPR applies to any company that does business with a European citizen, which includes many Australian businesses. Those businesses must be able to immediately find and provide any information they possess that includes the personal details of a customer. They must be able to edit that information, delete it on request, and protect it from cyberattackers. This is a complex undertaking that can be made easier and more effective with AI.
AI can help sort out the mess of content that most companies are dealing with. It can impose order on chaos, to a large extent.
But the area where AI can have the most impact is on content that hasn’t yet been developed. Applying AI from the start makes that content much easier to manage. Importantly, it can then start to help businesses derive value from that content without much human intervention.
Using automation to improve efficiency
AI systems can monitor how employees interact with documents, then learn from those patterns to automate the process. For example, it can see how certain documents are classified and where they’re saved, then take over that classification and storage process.
By applying AI to automate burdensome, administrative tasks, you can free up employees to focus on value-adding activities, and you can move faster due to the efficiency gains delivered by automation.
Where to next with AI?
It’s important to note that AI is in the early stages of adding value for companies. The opportunities still outnumber the companies leveraging them, and the technology is still being developed and enhanced. To start exploring how you could gain a business advantage from AI, contact Konica Minolta today.
