Chamber Insider Blog

This Holiday Season, Give the Gift of Intelligence: Artificial Intelligence

Blog series by Vanessa Wagner, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Manager, Loudoun County, Va Department of Economic Development

Welcome to the future happening right now. For many, artificial intelligence may sound like a theme from a science fiction novel; however, implementing A.I. technologies is an increasingly important strategy when designing new and improved products.

So what exactly is A.I.? Techopedia defines A.I. as “an area of computer science that emphasizes the creation of intelligent machines that work and react like humans.” Fortunately, for those who don’t consider themselves tech-savvy, examples of A.I. will be plentiful this holiday season. Expect to see a mix of brand new gadgets along with A.I. enhancements to familiar favorites. A.I. applications such as speech recognition, learning and problem-solving with limited human manipulation may be dancing around your tree this year!

  • Anki Cozmo Robot: This little robot has a one-of-a-kind personality which evolves the more you interact with him. In Anki’s words, “He doesn’t just learn; he plots and plans. He doesn’t just see you, he gets to know you.”
  • Furby Connect: Coming back almost a decade after inception is the new version, Furby Connect. The new Furby is Bluetooth-enabled to interact with a mobile application while it talks to you, learns new phrases and responds with visual animations.
  • Roomba: This smart vacuum navigates its environment and uses iRobot’s AWARE(tm) Robotic Intelligence System to make decisions on its own, or with very limited human input.
  • Google Home/Amazon Echo: With these gadgets you get a two-for-one, smart-home technology interwoven with A.I. Both gadgets have the ability to recognize speech patterns and continuous learning.

While the holidays are a fun way to explore new tech-enabled gadgets, Loudoun businesses are creating or including these into their strategies year-round. In Loudoun there are many ways to connect with your local tech community to stay informed, get inspired and walk into the future confidently. Join the next Loudoun County Chamber of Commerce’s Technology Coalition meetings, or one of the two monthly meetups hosted by the Loudoun County Department of Economic Development: Bytes & Bites: Loudoun or Loudoun Tech Startups.

 

At Loudoun Economic Development, your business is our business. We want to make sure Loudoun companies are successful, and if your company isn’t in Loudoun already, we’d like to discuss how moving here can contribute to your success. Start by calling us today 1-(800)-LOUDOUN

(n.d.). Photos Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/95850362@N02/12353808604/player/e99fbb3c7a

Artitfical Intelligence (AI). (2016, December 1). Retrieved from Techopedia: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/190/artificial-intelligence-ai

Cozmo Tech. (2016, December). Retrieved from Anki: https://anki.com/en-us/cozmo/cozmo-tech

Layton, J. (2005, November). How Robotic Vacuumns Work. HowStuffWorks. Retrieved from http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/gadgets/home/robotic-vacuum2.htm

Li, Y., Sharan, L., & Adelson, E. (2005). Compressing and Companding High Dynamic Range Images with Subband Architectures. Cambridge: Dept. of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, and Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab.