AI the buzz in holiday season

We in India, might just be reading a lot about Artificial Intelligence (AI) and maybe seeing some small bits and parts in different parts of life. But in USA, it’s a reality which is staring hard. As holiday season fast approaches, retailers are turning to AI to deliver goods and solve logistical issues.

The demand for labourers is so high that supply is not able to keep up. This has forced many to use AI. Clothes chain retailer Gap is using automated arms and artificial intelligence to sort the retailer’s clothing orders. Walmart is testing robots that will go around the store aisles to take stock of inventory and advice workers about the location of goods. Many logistics providers are sending mobile step-stools mounted with shelves through fulfillment centers to help pull online orders for toys, apparel and Disney Corp. products.

In the US, it has become very common place to see workers pulling carts and maneuvering forklifts alongside machines built to keep goods moving at a rapid pace. About 16.5% of organizations across several industries including warehousing are now using commercial service robots, and 21.5% have them in pilots, according to a 2018 survey of 600 respondents by research firm IDC.

We somehow do not see this happening in India as labour is available in plenty and maybe much cheaper and less maintenance free than robots and AI. But yes, this is the reality of the future; maybe the next generation will be witness to AI taking over menial tasks and working alongside humans.