b'(continued from page 1)farmer at a time. Blue River developed and fielded offensive strategies. How do we protect ourselvesreal-time autonomous agriculture robots that see and from the implications associated with our worksspray. exposure to AI, or what many researchers are studying as a means to explore possible jobThese tractor attachments use computer vision that displacement, and how do we leverage thecombines cameras and algorithms to distinguish between technology to remain competitive?weeds and crops, and sprays herbicides on only the weeds. This AI-enhanced technology reduced chemical Demystifying AIusage by more than 90%, resulting in tremendous cost Artificial intelligence refers to computer systemssavings. John Deere ultimately acquired Blue River for that can simulate certain aspects of human$305 million in 2017. intelligence to execute tasks such as problem- The Business Value of AI solving, decision making and learning. However,The global AI market is projected to increase by a its important to note that current AI models arecompound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 39.4%, limited in their abilities and can only perform reaching roughly $422 billion by 2028. Many industries, specific tasks they have been trained to do. In other words, they lack the flexibility and adaptability ofincluding construction, recognize opportunities to human intelligence. Put simply, AI is designed toincrease efficiency and profitability by leveraging this perform one task at a time and cannot easily switchtool. A six-year data series conducted by IBM revealed between tasks or perform new ones.that early adopters of AI reported operating cost savings Many researchers and academics broadly separaterelated to process efficiency, supply chain and AI into three categoriesArtificial Superintelli- production optimization, and labor efficiency. gence (ASI), Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)Companies involved in this study reported 6.3 and Artificial Narrow Intelligence (ANI). ASI ispercentage points of direct revenue gains directly where machines become self-aware and surpassattributable to AI on average. human intellect. This form of AI is merely hypothetical. AGI, or strong AI, is the concept of aEngineering and construction (E&C) leaders predict that machine with general intelligence that simulatesAI will have an immense impact on the industry. James human intelligence and behaviors, with the abilityBarret, chief innovation officer for Turner Construction, to learn and solve any problem the way we do. Thistold Construction Dive that Artificial intelligence will too remains in the realm of science fiction, with atransform the industry in the next 10 years more than leading MIT roboticist predicting that AGI wont arrive until the year 2300.any other technology has in the past century. In other words, the widespread adoption of AI-enhanced Artificial Narrow Intelligence (ANI), or weak AI, isoperational processes may transform from a competitive designed to complete a single task without humanadvantage to a necessity for staying competitive. assistance. It is trained to do one thing and automatically apply the knowledge gained fromEnhancing Labor, Not Replacing It performing that task to the next. Its function isThere are countless examples of how AI-enhanced narrow in scope. Some currently utilized ANIprocesses can improve construction operations, but most models are in smart speakers, self-driving cars, webinterestingly is how it can address construction labor searches, AI farming and manufacturing. ANI isshortages. It may seem counterintuitive to suggest widely used in industry today and has the potentialleveraging a technology that many fear will replace to reshape construction operations in the future.construction jobs to address labor shortages.Example: Futuristic FarmingIts natural to be concerned about job displacement due to AI, especially when you consider how robotics and One success story in AI involves an agriculture start automation systems have already displaced millions of -up company called Blue River Technology, ajobs, 1.7 million in manufacturing since 2000. grassroots effort started by two graduate students. The founders began by manually taking pictures inHowever, its important to remember how ANI is the field with handheld cameras to train their AIgenerally only capable of carrying out specific and model, then started selling their product to one controlled functions. Unlike manufacturing, construction (continued to page 11)4'