INFORM predicts transformative AI trends set to shape 2024

With Artificial Intelligence (AI) on the rise and increasingly shifting from hype to deployment, it is becoming an integral part of ever more diverse areas of life and business. As a global leader in advanced AI-based optimization software solutions, INFORM is forecasting several pivotal trends in AI that are expected to influence a wide array of industries and societal practices in 2024 and beyond.

“While AI technology advances at a breakneck pace, human adoption is catching up,” Dr. Jörg Herbers said, CEO of INFORM, where he is responsible for AI, Operations Research and Cloud Transformation. “With the proliferation of AI across language, imagery, and sound processing, we foresee a substantial increase in user acclimatization to these technologies as they mature,” he added.

1. Intuitive AI usage: The forthcoming year heralds the beginning of a paradigm shift in human-AI interaction, inspired by industry visionaries. With the backing of Softbank's Masayoshi Son, former Apple designer Jony Ive wants to build an "iPhone of artificial intelligence" which aims to create a more natural user experience, signaling a move away from screen-centric interfaces. This evolution reflects a broader trend towards seamless integration of AI into our daily tools, enhancing the way we work, communicate, and interact with technology. It is to be expected that even complex business software will have to be easy to operate via language input to meet customer requirements.
    
2. Generative AI integration: AI is rapidly becoming an integral component of software products, as observed by Apple CEO Tim Cook who has come to refer to AI and machine learning as "fundamental technologies" integral to virtually any product. INFORM anticipates that generative AI will follow suit, embedding itself as a co-pilot across various platforms, thereby enhancing user interaction and functionality across industries.
    
3. Human-AI interaction: As iterative AI interactions are becoming the norm, users are expected to adapt to a continuous feedback loop in various applications, from creative pursuits with tools like Midjourney to engineering solutions developed inhouse in large technology companies. This transformative journey, evident from the integration of AI in products like Microsoft Office, Apple's iPhone, or INFORM’s optimization and decision-making software, suggests a future where AI's role is both collaborative and assistive.
    
4. Expansion into new domains: With the success of text and image models, the focus will eventually start to shift towards video-to-text AI, promising to revolutionize learning from everyday human activities. In addition, AI systems will learn from more diverse data, increasingly more representative data compared to those with which they were previously trained. Pioneering work in other domains, such as AlphaFold's protein folding, suggests transformative potential for AI applications beyond current paradigms. As a logical next step, enterprises will be equipped with AI systems that will help to dynamically adapt and optimize their business processes, for example.
    
5. Data Democratization: The BMW Group's release of the SORDI (Synthetic Object Recognition Dataset for Industries) open-source dataset underscores a shift towards open data ecosystems. By sharing high-quality production data, organizations are fostering a collaborative environment that spurs AI innovation, ensuring a more equitable future where data fuels progress for all.
    
6. Cybersecurity Concerns: The proliferation of AI tools has inadvertently fueled a surge in phishing attacks, as evidenced by the dramatic rise in incidents following the availability of ChatGPT. This underscores the urgent need for advanced cybersecurity measures to counter the sophisticated threats posed by malicious AI utilization.
    
7. Ethical AI: The recent unauthorized use of Scarlett Johansson's likeness in a deepfake advertisement illustrates the growing ethical concerns surrounding AI. As AI's capabilities advance, so does its potential for misuse, calling for heightened vigilance and a robust ethical framework to govern its applications. Developments such as the EU AI Act, US President Biden's Executive Order on AI, and the G7’s Hiroshima Process hint at the imminent implementation of regulatory frameworks.

"As we stand on the brink of these transformative AI advancements, INFORM remains at the forefront, not just in forecasting trends, but in actively shaping the future of AI for the optimization of business processes,” Herbers said. INFORM will remain committed to exploring these trends to provide innovative solutions while advocating for responsible and ethical AI development, as demonstrated with the publication of Responsible AI Guidelines in September 2023.