AAIA's AI Beat Newsletter: The week's news, Chapter Events Highlights, Chapter President Spotlight: Pablo Biggs

In today’s newsletter:

• Recent AI news stories that caught our (and Perplexity AI’s!) eye

• Chapter Event Highlight: Seattle, WA, USA Chapter’s inaugural event

• Chapter President Spotlight: Pablo Biggs, AAIA North Carolina, USA Chapter

• Become an AAIA member

AI in business and the enterprise news:

Here’s what Perplexity AI said were notable news stories over the last week:

• Microsoft to launch autonomous AI agents in November (Computerworld, October 21, 2024)

  • “Microsoft on Monday announced that tools to build AI agents in Copilot Studio will be available in a public beta that begins at the company’s Ignite conference on Nov. 19, with pre-built agents rolling out to Dynamics 365 apps in the coming months too.”

  • “Generative AI (genAI) agents can be seen as the next stage in the evolution of conversational AI assistants such as Microsoft’s Copilot and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. While AI assistants respond directly to a user’s instructions — such as drafting an email or summarizing a document — autonomous AI agents are triggered by events and can perform more complex, multi-step processes on their own.”

• AI Moves From Boardroom Hype to Main Street Reality (PYMNTS, October 22, 2024)

  • “Deloitte’s third-quarter 2024 report on generative AI showed that companies are moving from testing to scaling their AI efforts. While 67% are boosting investments due to early successes, only 30% of projects have fully launched. Challenges include managing data, addressing risks and navigating unclear regulations. To maximize generative AI’s potential, businesses are focusing on integrating it into everyday processes, aiming for improvements in efficiency, innovation and customer relationships.”

• The insideAI News IMPACT 50 List for Q4 2024 (insideAI News, October 22, 2024)

  • “These companies have proven their relevance by the way they’re impacting the enterprise through leading edge products and services.”

  • “Companies (along with their subsidiaries) on the list exhibit technology leadership, strength of offering, proven innovation, positivity of message, quality perception by the enterprise community, sentiment and frequency of social media buzz, high profile of members of the C-suite, and in the case of public companies: positive financial indicators and stock price, plus so much more!”

• Here’s the full list of 39 US AI startups that have raised $100M or more in 2024 (TechCrunch, October 11, 2024)

  • “AI deals continued to dominate venture funding during the third quarter. AI companies raised $18.9 billion in Q3, according to Crunchbase data. That figure represents 28% of all venture funding.”

• Adobe aims to teach AI, online content skills to 30 million (Fast Company, October 14, 2024)

  • “A new program from Adobe aims to teach 30 million people AI, content creation, and marketing skills by 2030.”

  • “We think there’s an urgent need, but also a massive opportunity, as AI is transforming the way that people work and the type of jobs they’ll have,” says Stacy Martinet, Adobe’s vice president of marketing strategy and communications. “We want AI to bridge the digital divide, not further it.”

• GE HealthCare announces time-saving AI tool for doctors who treat cancer (CNBC, October 21, 2024)

  • “CareIntellect for Oncology, as the tool is called, will help oncologists get up to speed on a patient’s history and disease progression by quickly showing them the data they need, the company said. GE HealthCare wants to spare oncologists the headache of digging through records so they can focus on caring for their patients, the company said.”

  • “Health-care data is notoriously difficult to analyze, and as much as 97% of the data produced by hospitals goes unused, according to a Deloitte report. That information is stored across numerous vendors and file formats such as images, lab test results, clinical notes and device readings, which can be extremely taxing for doctors to sort through.”

• Honeywell partners with Google to integrate data with generative AI (Reuters, October 21, 2024)

  • “The partnership will bring together Alphabet-owned Google's Gemini - its most advanced AI technology - and Honeywell's industrial data collected through its Forge platform to automate tasks and reduce project times, in an industry that continues to grapple with a labor shortage.”

  • “The AI-powered tools will help automate tasks for engineers, warehouse workers, and technicians, among other uses, with the first AI-enabled solutions reaching Honeywell's customers in 2025.”

AAIA Chapters updates:

Chapter Event Highlight:

• The AAIA Seattle, WA, USA Chapter had its inaugural event last week. Congratulations, AAIA Seattle Chapter! Get involved with the Applied AI Association (AAIA) Seattle Chapter and attend future events by contacting Boaz Ashkenazy at [email protected]

We’ll be introducing a Chapter President to you each week.  This week, we feature Pablo Biggs, AAIA Chapter President for North Carolina, USA:

Company and position: Managing Director, Altreya Consulting LLC

Bio:

Pablo Biggs is a dynamic executive and consultant with significant experience in developing and implementing innovative technology solutions across various industries. As the Managing Partner of Altreya Consulting, LLC, Pablo guides organizations in creating technology-based solutions to achieve tangible business outcomes. He is also the founder of SIMmersive Inc., a company that leverages immersive technologies and applied AI to enhance healthcare engagement by simplifying access to personalized health solutions.

Pablo Biggs's biography highlights a successful track record in building and scaling technology-based solutions for Fortune 500 companies, SMBs, and startups. He has led initiatives using AR, VR, and AI to revolutionize industries, streamline operations, and unlock new markets. Notable achievements include helping a Fortune 500 company emerge from bankruptcy through novel technology strategies and guiding a medical device company through its transition from venture funding to a $908 million strategic acquisition. Pablo is passionate about driving innovation and growth by strategically applying transformative technologies, emphasizing that technology is integral to all business activities. He has also shared his expertise as a guest lecturer at several prestigious universities.

As the Chapter President for the Applied AI Association in North Carolina, Pablo’s mission will be to connect AI technology companies with businesses seeking to improve productivity through AI deployment.

Email Pablo Biggs at: [email protected] 

Our list of AAIA Chapters continues to grow!  If you live in a Chapter city/region and would like to get involved, email your city’s/region’s Chapter President.