In a world that is inundated with growing volumes of data, embracing technologies like big data and AI are a great way to change the game. With capabilities across data analysis, deep learning, machine learning, natural language processing, and predictive and preventive analytics, both technologies several opportunities that can be leveraged to enhance business outcomes. Although both, in isolation, offer an array of benefits, have you ever wondered how Big Data and AI work together? Let’s find out!
Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
As the world recognizes the benefits of unearthing critical insights from different types of data and converting them to actionable insights to fuel better decision-making, the realm of big data and AI is growing considerably.
Big Data
Big data is defined as, “a combination of structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data collected by organizations that can be mined for information and used in machine learning projects, predictive modeling and other advanced analytics applications”. It deals with extracting information from data sets that are extremely large or complex to be analyzed by traditional data processing tools and software. Using big data, organizations can better capture, store, analyze, query, and visualize business data and efficiently handle the volume, variety, and velocity of modern data.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
AI, on the other hand, is defined as, “the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines that allow them to take data and quickly turn it into actionable information”. By mimicking human cognitive functions such as problem-solving and learning from experience, AI has the ability to rationalize and take action in a way that best meets the goal. Together, the technologies can spot trends and patterns from historical (and real-time) data and enable organizations to take decisions not based on gut or intuition but backed by hard evidence.
How do Big Data and AI Work Together?
When big data was first introduced, it completely transformed the decision-making game for enterprises worldwide. With the launch of AI, together the technologies are giving organizations new opportunities to unleash a whole new world of use cases and data types. With so much more data being generated every minute, big data and AI when paired together are helping unlock potential in data that was previously deemed complex or even impossible. Big data, when used by AI algorithms, can not only help drive better insight into business problems, but also improve the time and accuracy with which these problems are solved – by learning through experience. Here are some ways in which big data and AI can work together and create better results for businesses:
Better and Quicker Data Analysis
Before AI, big data analysis results had to be manually studied to derive insights. Such an approach was not only time-consuming, it was also prone to error. With AI models, now big data results can be automatically analyzed using a multitude of ways to unearth insights and cut down analysis time from days to minutes.
Predictive Data-Driven Decision-Making
AI enhances the quality and accuracy of big data with totally new capabilities to take decisions based on training data. The combined forces, when used together, can help organizations in taking predictive decisions, such as when a machine might fail – without the need for complex human know-how.
Spot Trends and Make Connections
Big data and AI together can also enable organizations to have a more holistic view of data from across the enterprise. By providing quicker and more efficient ways of making connections between key data sets, they can help analyze past data and spot trends more easily.
Overcome Data Quality Issues
Another great benefit of using big data and AI together is to overcome bad data problems. Since AI algorithms are only as good as the data that is fed into them, they can greatly help in cleansing big data – from identifying duplicate records to detecting outliers and missing values.
Free Data Scientists
In addition, big data and AI, when used together, can enable data scientists to focus on critical analysis tasks – than spend time in manually analyzing results gleaned by big data tools. Because AI models can automatically predict big data results, data scientists can drive efforts in building better algorithms and thus, better business outcomes.
Eliminate Human Bias
Since AI models are trained using real data, organizations can also eliminate potential bias that might result when humans manually interpret and analyze data. Such elimination can not only result in quicker insights and more efficient business decisions, it can also help increase enterprise productivity.
The Future Belongs to Big Data and AI
Despite organizations realizing the potential of unearthing insights from business data, many end up spending inordinate amounts of time going through never-ending reports to find the insight they need. Although big data and AI have been embraced by organizations in isolation, when combined, their capabilities multiply. From enabling better and quicker analysis to driving predictive decision-making, identifying trends, and making connections to overcoming data quality issues, freeing data scientists from menial analysis tasks to eliminating human bias – the future belongs to big data and AI.
