With AI having gained much popularity, AI development companies have also mushroomed just as rapidly worldwide. With so many options to choose from, how do you, as a business owner or leader, determine which AI company is right for your unique needs and challenges?
In this article, we discuss the characteristics and qualities of a reliable AI development partner. Prior to that, we’ve also outlined some of the most common use cases of AI, to help you draw some inspiration. Read on to know more!
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Top industry use cases that AI companies can deliver
Context-aware customer service
The usage of AI for customer service has long since been popular, with common queries being delegated to virtual assistants, while human agents tackle complex quandaries and sensitive complaints.
Conversational AI in particular is being utilised to discover customer intent, including emotions across the spectrum (from satisfaction to frustration) – with responses that follow being tailored to deliver solutions that are as closely fitting as possible.
Intelligent forecasting and predictive analytics
Forecasting and predictive analytics have long since been a hot topic for organisations, well before the introduction of mainstream generative AI. However, heightened access to deep learning has now enabled businesses to custom-create models for proprietary use, while training them with proprietary historical data for results that are uniquely tailored to their needs alone.
With AI, predictive analytics has especially gone further with the implementation of smart recommendations. This means that the final result doesn’t only include the data alone – it comes appended with possible solutions as well, in order to aid business decision making.
Transcription and translation
While digital transcription and translation were available well before mainstream AI ever made its entry, it’s now been advanced to deliver exponentially higher rates of accuracy in the final result. Additionally, AI has made translations for multiple languages now available at the click of a button, along with high accuracy rates when it comes to detections via OCR – skipping manual transcription all together, for near-instant translations.
Diagnostics in healthcare, manufacturing and maintenance
Comprehensive model training and predictive analytics are being utilised to deliver intelligent and context-aware diagnostics across multiple industries, namely healthcare, manufacturing and maintenance.
By analysing reports from all angles, healthcare professionals can make sure no points of consideration are missed. On the manufacturing side, production and inventory levels can be automatically adjusted to meet customer demands, while also accounting for supply chain disruptions based on seasonality or the economy.
When it comes to maintenance, larger organisations are shifting towards predictive maintenance business models – both for internal systems as well as for the products they build. The automotive industry, for example, uses IoT technology in its vehicles to alert customers as well as technicians on what needs to be checked, well before breakdowns occur.
The characteristics of top AI development companies
A keen orientation towards business needs, problems and objectives at all times
As with any other consulting partner, a constant focus towards your business’s pain points and the subsequent alignment of all solutions to address the very same, is a hands-down hallmark characteristic of any reliable AI development company.
On top of that, observing how nimble your AI development partner is in the presence of turbulent times (whether it’s waning revenue, tariffs or compliance-related challenges) can determine if you have a partner you can truly trust.
Being unafraid to steer away from AI – if that’s what’s best for the business
AI isn’t the solution to every problem. Although it’s ironic, your AI development partner should be objective enough to express the very same to your business teams, if the most optimal solution wouldn’t require the use of AI. Ultimately, the goal is to fix problems, optimise workflows and meet bottom lines – irrespective of technology.
Sometimes, a dated solution may be the best solution. Again, observing this will enable your teams to understand whether your AI development partner has your business’s best interests at heart – or is hyper-focused on adopting AI everywhere, even if it isn’t optimal.
Always building with security and compliance in mind
With big data a significant component for training AI models, ascertaining the source of this data, as well as express consent from those to whom the data belongs to, is now a point of contention – for users, businesses and governments alike. Your AI development partner also needs to be cognisant of this.
Whether it’s sourcing data appropriately, using isolated networks/servers, or adhering to regulations such as GDPR and CCPA, your AI development partner needs to be onboard – again, in the interest of aligning to your business’s needs, based on the industry and/or region you operate in.
How to hire AI developers that are best suited to your business needs
Whether you are looking to partner with a brand new AI development company or are already partnered with one, following the below steps can help you both with hiring dedicated AI specialists, or an entire team.
- Conduct an assessment: Gather relevant team members to discuss your business’s requirements and objectives, with your AI development partner. Next, collate your discussion into a brief, which will serve as a primary point of reference for all things going forward.
- Start with a pilot/MVP: Make sure to start with a project of a smaller nature. An MVP (Minimum Viable Product) is a great starting point, as it enables both development and client teams to only focus on the most essential capabilities, while future updates are determined by user feedback.
- Measure, iterate and repeat: Upon deployment and analysis, identify any setbacks and/or errors to iterate on, ahead of the next phase of updates. Gather momentum gradually, by increasing the size of your projects with time.
In conclusion…
With the proliferation of AI development companies the world over, distinguishing legit ones from the noise is going to be one of the most important decisions that a business needs to make, before any AI-related development can ever take place. Even amongst leading and reputed companies, not all are going to be suitable for your business’s unique needs, so identifying who you can partner with is a choice that needs to be done with much research, attention to detail, and mindfulness.
Irrespective of what your business’s individual needs may be, the following characteristics always prevail across reliable AI development companies:
- Constant attention, and subsequent alignment of all solutions towards business problems/needs/objectives,
- The initiative to focus on solutions that are best for the business, as opposed to forcing the use of AI even when it isn’t needed,
- Consideration towards a business’s compliance/regulatory, data privacy and security needs.
While the above pointers double-up as a checklist when shopping around for a new AI development partner, they are just as relevant for existing partnerships – thereby placing the onus on you, the business owner or leader, for always observing whether standards are maintained, and your business needs are always kept at the fore.