Becoming known as the new industrial revolution; AI’s transformative potential is causing widespread change in industries across the world.

So much so, it feels like we’re seeing a new development or gadget every other day. From self-driving cars and robot hoovers to chatbots and AI powered coffee machines, when was the last time you read something that didn’t feature the latest AI gimmick?

As such a hot topic of conversation, it’s easy to get lost in the more frivolous stuff and that can make it hard to see the bigger picture. A factor not helped by the lack of serious debate on the potential of AI during the recent general election campaign.

If we take a step back, we can see the broader benefit and impact AI can bring to businesses. Just as a rising tide raises all ships, AI has the potential to help Scottish businesses punch above their weight and, if used effectively, could give us the boost we need to make it to the global stage. But it only works if – from government down – we’re all invested.

The bigger picture

With a rapidly developing technology sector and home to Edinburgh, a region well on its way to claiming the data capital of Europe title, Scotland stands to benefit considerably from developments in AI. And with an array of potentially revolutionary
applications already progressing through development, we’re seeing some big leaps for several industries including space, healthcare, agriculture and energy.

From AI supported satellites used to monitor environmental risks and tackle climate change, to efficiently detecting early signs of cancer with remarkable accuracy, AI is already significantly benefitting these sectors.

AI isn’t just being used to boost new or tech-driven industries like space and healthcare though. It’s also proving transformative for some of our more traditional sectors, like energy and agriculture.

Since its introduction, some businesses have been leveraging AI to enhance the efficiency of their operations. For example, Scotland has its first AI supported offshore wind farm that’s using AI to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of managing vessel operations for smarter monitoring, management and operational performance.

The challenge

While data and AI are providing significant benefits to the Scottish economy, we mustn’t get too comfortable. Just as any ship must be durable to changing seasons and unexpected weather conditions, businesses must also adapt to the rapidly changing economic landscape.

When it comes to adopting, implementing, and harnessing the power of data and AI, upskilling remains one of the most significant challenges. And if we want to continue seeing success, we must prepare a workforce that is fit for tomorrow.

With the rapid pace of technological advancements, it’s not surprising that upskilling is a major challenge. It completely outpaces the speed at which the education system can keep up.

If we base our education system on today’s problems, in 15 years when the new generation enters the workforce, the global environment will have changed dramatically, and their skills risk being outdated.

While there’s no silver bullet solution that will magically resolve the issue, there are some steps Scotland can take to help address it.

Firstly, it’s essential that industry and education can work closely together and do so from an early stage. This will ensure children are exposed to core skills throughout the school years.

As young people progress to college or university and employment horizons become clearer, there will be an opportunity to home in on key skills relevant to the industry as it stands at that time. Again, this can only be successful if industry stays close enough to academia.

This way, we can ensure the skills being taught in higher education are those most demanded by industry, allowing for better responsiveness to rapid changes in sector requirements.

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Ultimately, if we are to tackle tomorrow’s issues, we must be flexible in our approach, reviewing and updating course material regularly and it must be a collaborative effort to ensure long-term success for the sector.

As the AI landscape continues to evolve at an unprecedented pace, staying focused on the big picture will be crucial for Scottish businesses to stay ahead of the AI curve.

Recognising the challenges and taking practical steps to implement positive, long-term change could be key to Scotland maximising the economic potential AI has for Scottish businesses, but it only works if we’re in it together at every level.