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In 2018, when asked how he imagines the world would be in 50 years, Rand Hindi, Co-founder & CEO of Snips — a Paris-based company that is revolutionising the use of AI to allow it to communicate like humans — emphasised that the future is not one that exists without people, as popular speculative fiction would have us believe. The future is represented by machines that interface with humans, combining our horizontal intelligence with the vertical execution of artificial intelligence (AI).
This may sound estranged, if not bizarre, to some but the integration of man and machine need not be a just a conceptual thought, neither should it be left on a mantel as a future to look forward to. It is a reality, and AI is already affecting more aspects of human lives, integrating into all sectors that exist, than some are aware of or willing to admit to.
For some years now, communication analysts have been experimenting with the science of data and AI to understand how to communicate with consumers in an autonomous and seamless manner. Marketing has always been about the aforesaid, but the difference is that for the first time now, we are thinking of freeing this process of personal involvement and transferring it to the realm of algorithms and big data.
Consider the science behind target demographics and the methodologies being utilised to identify an audience. From the foundations of relevant data to the bespoke content created for customers, machine learning and AI have today made it possible for marketers to not just draw a clearer picture of their target audiences but also present them with personalised products, ideas, or services.
On a broader scale, big data insights, digital marketing tools, machine learning tactics, and robotic solutions, if used and integrated optimally to the marketing plans, have the potential to boost the overall performance and uplift ROIs for a business. Today, both consumers and marketers live in an information- and technology-driven world.
Since the impact of AI on the success of marketing campaigns and the effectiveness of marketing strategies has been acknowledged, businesses have been looking for innovative tools to implement AI and integrate it into the very fabric of their respective industries. As companies leverage breakthroughs into digital disruptions, cloud, mobile, and social technology to deliver bespoke, valuable, and immediate experiences, the question has evolved from ‘what if?’ to ‘how fast can it be done?’
In the last part of my blog I scratched the surface of the mind-blowing world of AI, which has remained a neglected topic in the communication industry.
Why? – Because AI is in its infancy and may offend our idea of what it means to be human.
The communication industry is a particularly human profession because it relies on meaningful and trustful relationships, an empathetic approach that gets to the heart of client, consumer and contributor needs, and a high level of creativity to craft compelling content.
Bringing the two together, I would like to make a provocative argument – that AI could make the communication industry even more human. I’d like to explore one significant way that I think AI can do this: by redefining outreach.
Human Outreach
Much of successful new-age communication lies in outreach, which literally describes reaching out to people in the right way, at the right time, in the right place and with the right message. Currently this relies on teams of humans working out by trial and error, and ideally backed up by digital data, what does and does not resonate with different target audiences. We then use these insights to adjust our strategies accordingly.
This is similar to how cognitive AI systems work, for example IBM Watson, which observes, interprets and evaluates big data to provide hypotheses to questions posed in natural language. But one huge difference is that these systems complete this task in a fraction of the time and can also find insights in vast volumes of unstructured data that would make the human mind boggle. This includes all data that is created by humans for other humans: articles, blogs, social media posts, research reports, literature – you name it. The power of AI lies in its ability to sift through this data and pluck out valuable patterns.
Just imagine the consumer and market insights AI could provide in the communication industry. While this technology may seem beyond our reach at the moment, it is becoming increasingly mainstream and has in fact already entered the communication world. Condé Nast recently partnered with IBM Watson to fine-tune its social media campaigns. The system analysed the last 20,000 words published by potential influencers to find the best campaign ambassador in minutes. When it came to the audience, the system assessed 52 unique attributes for each magazine reader to work out what messages would make them tick. Other major international brands like Coca Cola, Mc Donald’s and L’Oréal are also using AI systems to strengthen their understanding of their customers.
What does this mean for the communication world and how could it make our profession more human, or even super-human?
Microsoft, one of the leading pioneers of AI technology, states this as one the key pillars in its approach to designing AI systems: “Humans are the heroes.”
I believe in this and I am excited by the ironic potential that AI and machines have to bring out the humanity in humans – not just in the communication industry but on a global level.
Ahmad Itani is Founder & CEO at Cicero & Bernay Public Relations, an independent PR agency headquartered in Dubai offering new-age public relations consultancy to the UAE and across the MENA region. | www.cbpr.me