AI in Industry Today

This chapter provides an extensive dive into AI research and innovation in industry today. We begin by considering the most important source of AI innovation outside of academia: Big Tech research labs. While it is not always evident who should, and should not, be included under the umbrella of “Big Tech,” some candidates are fairly apparent, including Apple, Meta, and Alphabet. These companies and their products have had an outsize impact on smartphones (and other similar devices, as well as enabling services such as digital payment systems and media), social media, and Web search. At the same time, it has become evident over the last several years that companies not traditionally or currently classed as Big Tech companies, such as Tesla, but also large defense companies, such as Lockheed Martin, have also made important innovations in various subfields of AI. We briefly comment on these, before switching our discussion to the Chinese “Big Tech.” Finally, we comment on the important and disruptive role that small- and medium-sized enterprises, including startups, play in fostering and commercializing innovation in emerging technologies such as AI. We close the chapter with a case study on neural language models that have revolutionized applications in natural language processing and potential ethical concerns.