Businesses are investing in artificial intelligence (AI). Some are pouring unprecedented resources into an AI bet that sees the future dominated by AI agents monitored by a scattering of humans in the loop. Almost two thirds of businesses, however, are investing less than €10,000 in the tech this year. Rollout is fragmented, but industry leaders say the trend is going in one direction. In this Special Report from The Irish Times, we take an in-depth look at the latest business outcomes for AI, the technology’s impact on everything from mortgages to car sales, and why emerging cases in retail point towards a radically different future for consumer interaction.
AI is playing an increasing role in finding the right fit for buyers and working out how much a trade-in model is worth. DoneDeal, for example, is working on AI from both ends, appearing in ChatGPT searches but also integrating its own AI assistant, named Cara, in its smartphone app to help people with their car searches, writes Neil Briscoe.
The technology is also being integrated across the financial sector to improve operational efficiency, decision accuracy, risk management and customer service. In banking services, AI is adopted for credit scoring and loan approvals based on customers’ financial and behavioural information. In investing, AI analysis tools are increasingly integrated into fintech platforms, such as stock-trading apps. And in customer service, conversational generative AI is steadily replacing the more rigid keyword-based chatbots, reports Sandra O’Connell.
And can defenders keep up with cybercriminals? Cyber resilience is not about avoiding every incident, writes Frank Dillon, but being able to continue operating and recover predictably when they occur. One of the more frightening impacts of AI is its ability to turbocharge cyberattacks and to put advanced hacking technology into the hands of a wide array of nefarious actors, even those without high-level IT skills or resources. While not every business can afford the cybersecurity products used by large multinationals, for example, any business can plan ahead and prepare to recover quickly.
