The practical applications of AI: 6 videos

At the second annual Applied Artificial Intelligence Conference, held in May 2017 in San Francisco, nearly 600 technologists, business leaders, and VCs, gathered to talk about how machine learning is impacting businesses. The conference, hosted by BootstrapLabs, has doubled in size—clear evidence of the growing interest of the business community in integrating AI into their products.

TechRepublic spoke to six leaders at the event about how they see AI shaping business. Here are the interviews:

1. How can AI systems remain secure?

Cybersecurity threats are one of the primary concerns for businesses, as hacking attacks have become more sophisticated. Here, Mårten Mickos, CEO of HackerOne, talks about how his company of 100,000 white hat hackers help companies spot threats—sometimes within minutes—before it's too late.

2. How Ford is focusing on mobility to help people in remote areas access tech and jobs

Autonomous vehicles are poised to radically shift the urban ecosystem. But how does infrastructure impact the ability for these vehicles to get around? And what happens for those in rural areas? Here, TechRepublic talks to Raj Rao, CEO of Ford Smart Mobility, about how transportation services can be provided on a much broader level and give people in remote areas a chance to access the same opportunities of their urban counterparts.

3. How does Intel see AI changing the future of enterprise IT?

Amir Khosrowshahi, CTO of the AI products group at Intel, talked to TechRepublic about how to "extract intelligence from data" by using advanced computing power. For instance—by 2020, autonomous vehicles will generate four terabytes of data per car, said Khosrowshahi, which will require an "unprecedented amount of compute power."

4. How LinkedIn is using AI to match job seekers with employment opportunities

TechRepublic caught up with Hema Raghavan, head of growth relevance at LinkedIn, about how AI and machine learning can help people looking for new jobs "leverage their social network" to gain access to new careers. LinkedIn uses AI to look at "signals from your profile," like info in a resume, to automatically point job seekers in the right direction.

5. What gaming can teach businesses about effectively using AI

While gaming has traditionally been "hardwired," said Danny Lange, ‎vice president of AI and machine learning at Unity Technologies, AI can now be used by developers to make more intelligent gaming platforms by learning from real human players. And what happens in games parallels what happens in business, he said. They're the same algorithms, all powered by huge amounts of data.

6. Why the future of cryptocurrency is about more than just Bitcoin

Bradley Rotter, an independent impact investor, spoke about how Bitcoin, the most widely-used digital currency, is the "biggest thing I've seen since the internet." TechRepublic spoke to Rotter about the nearly 600 distinct cryptocurrencies that are in circulation today, and how the rise of these new currencies will reshape the way transactions occur online.

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