Artificial intelligence (AI) is an area of computer science that emphasizes the creation of intelligent machines that work and react like humans. Some of the activities computers with artificial intelligence are designed for include speech recognition and problem solving through ‘learning’.

Machine learning is a core part of AI. There are two types of machine learning, supervised machine learning (numerical regressions) and unsupervised machine learning (classification). Classification determines the category an object belongs to and regression deals with discovering functions and  generates suitable outputs from the respective input

Unsupervised machine learning  is learning without any kind of supervision, insights and patterns in the data are identified in streams of inputs using statistical techniques such as clustering and factor analysis. Supervised machine learning is learning with adequate supervision, using historical data records as the target variable of interest.

AI is progressing rapidly, from self-driving cars to SIRI. While AI is used mainly for helping businesses to become more efficient and more digital, there is evidence that AI can also be harmful. As we hear each day, more and more companies data are being hacked by people who are misusing AI.

There is now a growing interest in AI safety and AI ethics as:

1. AI has the potential to become more intelligent than any human
2. AI algorithms can compute much faster than the human brain, AI algorithms can do multi-task learning and multi-modal learning. AI has becoming more and more, part of our daily lives. For example, we have apps that remind us we need to go for our run; While running, the app tells us to slow down, as we are running too fast; or tells us to run faster, as we are running a bit too slow, etc. We are becoming more and more reliant on AI algorithms to tell us what to do.
3. Another example, the other day, I was looking for a particular data science book to read, and while searching for the book, two books were recommended to me. I actually, bought, not only the book I set out to buy, but also bought the two recommended books. And guess what, the two recommended books were much more interesting than the book I set out to buy. My message to you, is that the AI algorithms are getting so intelligent that their recommendations are very accurate and we are trusting the  algorithms more and more, which is a good thing. But, what happens when the AI algorithm starts learning new information much faster than you expect and starts making recommendations and doing new things that are not in your control or harmful to you or your business.
4. AI algorithms on the not so good side, is that, AI algorithms are sometimes being developed by analysts who are not always properly trained in the field. The analyst  learns how to code using a book or online course and then obtains a job as a “Data Scientists” but really, they do not quite understand whether the models they build are good or not good, whether the models when run on their company data, produces an optimal result or not. As long as familiar output is seen by the coder, and the overall accuracy of the model is 99.1%, the analyst thinks he has produced a model that the company would be happy to use. No testing is done, no validation is done, the company trusts the analyst and deploys the model into the market because the overall reported accuracy of the model was 99.1% by simply copying and pasting the code for their company tasks. It is usually later discovered (when the company is losing money) that the data was unbalanced and the actual accuracy (“Sensitivity/Recall”) was 25%.
5. As there is a large shortage of trained “Data Scientists”, many businesses are taking the talent that they can find, usually very junior and inexperienced. It is scary that AI algorithms are being used by people who do not know or do not understand how the “black-box/neural network” works. Many analysts do not analyze the impact of the AI algorithms on the business. For AI to work well, communication on what the algorithm does, how the algorithm does it, why it does it that way, what the decision making strategies are, what is the impact to the business, how will the business operations change, have to me understood before the AI Algorithm is deployed into the market.

Yes, we are living in an exciting time, where we can obtain answers to our questions very quickly, through the use of AI. But, I think we are not asking ourselves enough questions. Questions such as:

1. Do we have a framework, set of standards as to check whether the AI algorithm is acceptable or not?
2. Do we have a framework, set of standard competency skills in AI that will examine and certify analysts as “Qualified Chartered Data Scientists” based on their work experience tasks and education.
3. AI can be harmful. Who will be responsible for the harm? The analyst who wrote the software code, or the owner of the company who employed him to write the code, or the person who bought/licensed the software code? We have no idea how bad AI programs can become, and when it will be dangerous and out of control. It could occur today, next week or net year.

I am sure there are lots of AI experts discussing and working on the above questions and many more questions on the ethics of AI. Our lives are no longer private. AI is clearly part of our daily lives. We search for something online and within a few seconds we obtain email advertisements or social media advertisements based on our search. In some cases our personal data is sold for purposes other than the purpose it was provided for. How do we control the use and misuse of our own data?

I can go on and on…but really, it is time for us to take charge. We are living in a world that is getting disruptive with new processes, new ways of doing things, quickly and efficiently. But, how efficient are we? Doing things quickly may be good, but how accurate or how profitable are your AI algorithms?

Most AI algorithms are probably effective, particularly in the beginning. But, extra care needs to be taken to monitor, modify and in some cases abort your AI algorithms because they are no longer as effective as the were a few months ago.

In a nutshell, AI is for a large part, is good and efficient, and aids businesses with their processes and decision-making, leading to more profitable and efficient businesses. I am more concerned about the cases where AI algorithms are either used for the wrong/bad purposes and there are not enough rules in place to guide analysts and businesses on the ethics and safety of AI.

Let me know your thoughts on AI: Good, Bad or Scary. In particular, if you know of any industry where there are good ethical/moral codes of conduct for AI, do post them to me.

My name is Carol Hargreaves. I am developing an Aussie Stock App that focuses on rating stocks on their financial health on a scale of 1-10 and rating stocks on the likelihood of their stock price going up on a scale of 1-10. Learn more at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5flHo5LGxdM

Here’s my story…5 years ago I didn’t know anything about technology or developers. But one thing I did know, is statistical analysis, and how to rate products on the likelihood of being sold or how to rate customers on the likelihood of being a credit risk or how to rate a transaction on the likelihood of being fraudulent.

Another, thing about me, I enjoy challenges. Selecting which stocks to buy is challenging as there is a large amount of uncertainty in the stock market. But, I have a passion for stock trading & analytics, so even though stock trading is challenging, I still enjoy it. So, too with analytics, even though problem solving is challenging, I enjoy the challenge!

So, with my statistical and analytical knowledge, I started to analyse all the stocks in the Australian stock market before buying a stock. I could see that I had something going…my stock trading strategy and selection of stocks were helping me to selection stock portfolios that outperformed the market.

The problem I had, it took a long time to analyse all the stocks in the Australian market, and in the process, I was missing out on some opportunities in the market because I was manually analysing the stock data.

As scoring customers, or scoring products using analytical techniques is my daily job, I decided, why not start scoring stocks using these same analytical techniques. So, I build a stock trading system that automated my analytical process and helped me to save time in analysing the data. My stock trading system uses sophisticated statistical techniques to identify the trends and patterns in the stock data which indicate which stocks are likely to go up in price. The Aussie Stock App also uses machine learning techniques to identify which stocks are financially healthy.
Over the past 18 months, I worked with data analysts to back-test and refine my trading strategy and, also worked with developers to build my Aussie Stock App (Minimum Viable Product (MVP)).

My goal is to help beginner stock traders to make informed decisions when selecting stocks. I believe that by analysing the stock data, we make unbiased, robust decisions about a stock, based on what the stock data tells us. My stock trading method is short term. I would say typically 0 – 3months.

If you want to learn how to trade stocks in the ASX market, you can use Aussie Stock App to help you choose good stocks and then ‘paper trade’. In other words, no actual money is required. All you do, you assume that you bought the stock and then to manage your risk of losing money in the stock market, you place the stock in a watch list, you will set your target price (maybe 50% more than the current stock price) when to sell and your stop loss price (maybe 3% less than the current stock price) when to sell. This way you will gain experience and confidence in stock trading without losing any of your money.

If you are interested in the Aussie Stock App, it is free. After 1 month, there are optional in-app payments for the Stock Financial Health Ratings (scale 1-10) and the Stock Rating for the stock price likely to go up (scale 1-10). You can learn more about Aussie Stock App at http://www.aussiestocktrader.com

See 

If you have any questions or feedback, please do not hesitate to contact me on carol.hargreaves@aussiestocktrader.com

Artificial Intelligence is growing in its application and is going to grow even more….it’s going to be big! Every organisation and every industry will be applying Artificial Intelligence to help them make smart decisions, faster & cheaper.

Artificial Intelligence helps all businesses to reduce or get rid of mundane manual processes. It also improves the business operations and helps to reduce processes and costs.

There are many use cases of Artificial Intelligence across all different industries, and to-date, the use cases are extremely valuable to businesses. But is it possible that one day, the Robots or Machine Learning Algorithms can get so smart that it may be to our detriment?

Let’s get the discussion going…Do you know what is #Artificial #Intelligence? Is your organisation or industry applying Artificial Intelligence to different aspects of its business? What do you find interesting about Artificial Intelligence? Is Artificial Intelligence working for your company? Do you think Artificial Intelligence can get the human race in trouble one day? What’s your thoughts on Artificial Intelligence?

#AI @DataAnalytic @DataAnalyticx

Source: My Story – Aussie Stock App

Every company has lots of customer data, product data, business services data, social media data, website data, financial data, etc. Data is extremely valuable today as it allows businesses to make decisions smarter and faster. But, are businesses using their data wisely? Can businesses answer questions they have fast?

The Application of Statistical Techniques to relevant data is the core method for understanding business data and solutions for business challenges. Do organisations have statistcially trained talent? How are decisions being made in organizations today? Do organizations have an in-house Analytics Team to help them make decisions faster and smarter?

Business Data Analytics Solutions Pty Ltd has just been launched to help organizations build up their Analytics Team and to assist organizations in understanding and solving their business problems.

Do you want to know more about how Business Data Analytics Solutions Pty Ltd can help you to build your in-house Analytics Team or provide you with the relevant Analytics Training which your organization needs, contact us at http://www.dataanalyticsexperts.com See link below: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVJ6tmlO5_8

People often ask me, “How did I start my career in Analytics?”. It was actually, quite by accident. In my first year at university I wanted to do the key science subjects such as Mathematics, Physics, & Chemistry but I needed a fourth subject and based on my time table options, Statistics was the only science course available for me. I had no idea what Statistics was about but I fully believed in myself that I could do it, even though there were many stories that Statistics is not easy to pass and the pass rate was only 40%.

I quite enjoyed the Statistics lectures and my professor, Prof Calitz told interesting stories and often challenged us with tricky problem solving questions. I worked hard at solving these problems and often went to my professor to share my solution and ask questions.

Prof Calitz never gave me a straight answer, he always rather probed me with one question after the next and sent me back to complete my solution. At that time, I thought Prof Calitz was a hard man and not very helpful but looking back, I can say that it is through him that I now have a good knack of asking lots of questions while problem solving. And you know what, during my university studies I had to work hard at my other courses such as Mathematics but didn’t really open a book for Statistics and still passed it with a Distinction!

I am today, very passionate about Analytics and enjoy working through business problems, which are quite challenging and more complex.I am very thankful to Prof Calitz for his good teaching approach!

1. Ask the right questions to achieve your business objective:Begin with the end in mind when asking questions, gain clarity and focus on what you need to know to achieve your objectives. If our goal is to increase our product sales to achieve a financial return of 80% say, To gain clarity we need to ask ourselves the typical 5 questions: Who?, What?, Where, How? Why. For example, who is buying our products, what products are they buying from us, where are they buying (which geography)? How are they buying our products (which channels are they using)? Why did they buy our products?Brainstorm with “what if” scenarios. Understand what the best case could be in terms of product sales, what could be the most likely case and what could be the worst case.

   Companies across industries are trying to understand and connect to the consumer at a more personalized level.There has been a strong shift from the business-to-business (B2B) model to the business-to-consumer (B2C) model.

2. Track the Metrics crucial for your organisation – Use industry KPIs

A good metric/KPI is:

• A number that drives change you are looking for
• A good metric is comparative
• A good metric is understandable
• A good metric is a ratio or rate
• Quantitative
• Actionable
• Leading Metrics
• Causal Metric

Below are some examples of good KPIs:

1. Sales Growth 
2. Leads 
3. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) 
4. Cost of Customer Acquisition (COCA) 
5. Website Traffic to Website Lead Ratio

3.Count People and number of unique Visitors instead of:

• Number of Hits
• Number of Page Views
• Number of Visits.
• Number of Downloads

4. Ensure that your Dynamic System is Data Driven:

To develop a Dynamic Data System, you need the right ‘People’, Processes’ and ‘Technology’.

The key people for a dynamic system is firstly, a Domain Knowledge person – understand the business and data available for answering the business questions,

Secondly, you need a Statistician who understands the statistical techniques that need to be applied to the data to discover insights and patterns that help to solve the business problems. The statistician is also able to provide data visualisation fast using drag and drop type tools for visualisation (Tableau, QlikView, SAS or R) to help the business user to make valuable decisions.

The third person you need is an Information Technology Specialist who ensures that the data definitions are consistent and that all the data is in one place and easy to retrieve for analysis in real-time thereby providing and effective enterprise dynamic system.

For Processes, we need to ensure that we have the right processes in place and that they are continuously improved, which means, we need to track process time and ensure that they are reasonable or even aim to shorten process times.We need to track customer complaints to better understand which processes require improvements and remove the processes that are not necessary.

5. To get the Dynamic System Right – Ask Lots of Questions

Starting with a clear objective is essential and then we still need to ask lots of questions once we have identified the objective. Question such as,  ‘What do you want to Achieve?’, ‘New Customers?’ or ‘Increased Customer Loyalty’ or ‘Increased Revenue?’. Then for example, how will you get the increased revenue? Will you run a promotion? How much increased sales do you expect from the promotion? Which customers are likely to buy from that promotion? When will these customers buy? How will they buy and which stores will they buy from? All these questions can be answered using statistical modelling and classification techniques that can be linked from one to another and in real-time the promotional offer is made to the right customer at the right time with the right product.

What is Dynamic Analytics? To answer this question, let’s take one step back and first ask ourselves, what is Analytics?

Analytics in a nutshell is about solving a business problem through asking yourself lots of questions that will allow you to better understand the business problem at hand.

Once the business problem is understood, it is for the analyst to work with the domain expert in gathering the relevant data and then to summarise the data numerically and visually to better understand the data at the aggregate level. Further, many hypotheses will be tested through comparing different groups and thereby gaining insights as to where statistical differences exist between various groups, customers and products.

Some correlation analysis tests between different variables will be made to understand the statistically significant relationships between the many business variables.In most cases, predictive analytics will be performed to allow businesses to plan their resources and strategy based on the predictions of whats likely to happen in the future. And the final step will be for the business to take the predictions made and to look at their resources to determine what is the best that the business can do to enable the prediction to take place.

Dynamic analytics is learning what customers want faster. Advances in Technology allow businesses to learn what customers want faster. Businesses also need to be aware that not all customers are the same. Customers differ on their demographics, their lifestyles, and their buying behaviour. Different groups of customers are interested in different products and services. Businesses therefore need to gather lots of data about their customers in almost real time to better understand when customers need, want and buy their products and services.

It is only with analysing customer data, can businesses better understand what customers buy, how often they buy, how much they buy, how they buy, what they buy together and when they buy. By using customer’s click stream on the web businesses can learn faster, almost in real time what customers want.

To learn what customers want faster, businesses need a social strategy, local strategy and a mobile strategy. Why do I say this? Well in today’s time, everyone is almost always on their mobile, so businesses need to analyse customer’s mobile usage and understand when are customers using their apps, how are customers using their apps, etc.

Research has also shown that customer’s research the products and services they are interested in, on their mobile while travelling on the bus, train, car and then share their knowledge with their friends, family, or colleagues through social media. Therefore businesses should have technology designed to listen to their customers when they interact socially and will then learn very quickly what customers want.

Lastly, research has also shown that most customers use their mobile to find products and services close by (local). Therefore, businesses should make sure that all their details, location, open and closing hours, information about their company, products and services are easily found when customer’s search for the nearest….restaurant, bank, petrol station, etc

Dynamic Analytics is ensuring that the business provides their customers with the right product at the right time, at the right place, with the right price & channel. Dynamic Analytics allows businesses to delight their customers by getting the next best offer right, that is , “offering your customer your product” before your customer even knows they need it!