Vidiemme has just one keyword in 2017: Chatbot.

In fact, for some time now Vidiemme has been studying, experimenting and building software based on a mix of Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing: technologies that are becoming familiar even to the general public, which has used them for years without really understanding the scope of that innovation that would soon be part of everyday life for all of us.

The history of AI starts far away and dates back to the 1950s, the decade in which the expression ‘Artificial Intelligence’ was introduced, marking its birth and its nature.

Much progress has been made since then, but only in recent years have real solutions been widely distributed in the market and entered forcefully into consumers’ lives. There remain many unexplored areas, both from the technological point of view, in which we see rapid progress that would once have been unthinkable, and from the perspective of markets and applications in the business field, as well as sociological questions about the audience’s willingness to welcome and understand this new technology.

These questions involve a series of interlocutors who orbit around technology, from software houses to companies that should adopt Artificial Intelligence solutions to assist and retain customers. And perhaps, precisely from the dialogue and the collaboration of the two interlocutors at the base of this innovation process, some of the present doubts may be dissolved, allowing us to move in a clearer and better-known panorama.

Participation at the 2017 AI Observatory

Given these premises and the knowledge that AI will increasingly be the driving technology of the future, Vidiemme decided to take part in the first edition of Milan Polytechnic’s Artificial Intelligence Observatory, which saw kick off in May.

Vidiemme has been active for some time in the Polytechnic’s Observatories, having taken part in several of them, from the Digital Innovation in Art & Culture Observatory, to the one dedicated to Design Thinking for Business, and always finding in them an opportunity for dialogue and training as well as interesting business opportunities.

That’s why the decision to join this project seemed almost obvious for a company that has made innovation its mission.

Aware of its importance and its many unexplored territories, we therefore decided to take part in this first edition of the Observatory dedicated to Artificial Intelligence, led by Prof. Alessandro Perego.

The Observatory and its objectives

In this first year of activity, the Observatory sets itself the objective of identifying the main distinctive aspects of Artificial Intelligence compared to other disciplines with a high level of innovation, to then identify and underline the typical capabilities of solutions that adopt this type of technology.

To arrive at this definition, we will analyze the technologies enabling Artificial Intelligence, and the main trends dictated by the major players in the sector, looking both at solutions already available on the market and at the most interesting application areas interested in adopting this type of innovation.

This data will provide a clear reading from which to infer both the impact that the adoption of this type of solution could have on processes, and the benefits and opportunities that would open up at the business level.

It will therefore be a year of intense research, in which Vidiemme is enthusiastic to participate and make its contribution. Always remembering that technology in itself is neither good nor bad but is simply an enabling tool.

Artificial Intelligence allows people to connect the world, to bring answers closer to users, making itself available 24/7 for a truly differentiating service. And that is why, in five years’ time, any technology unable to converse will be useless.

This is our vision, and participation in this first edition of the Artificial Intelligence Observatories is just one of the many steps we’ve taken to allow our customers to keep up with an ever-closer future.