Artificial intelligence is becoming a household name. The topic of AI's impact on business, as well as on people's daily lives, also came up during the European Economic Congress, which ended last month. Comarch was represented there by the company's CEO, Dr Anna Pruska, and the IT company's Vice President and Director of the Enterprise Solutions Sector Zbigniew Rymarczyk, who emphasized in one of the conversations held on the occasion of the ECE: – Most professions will change. We will be able to work in a different way – more creative, innovative, productive.

The theme of AI is resonating more and more loudly at various events or conferences for business. This fact is not surprising, as artificial intelligence will already revolutionize the approach to business issues for good by automating and improving many processes in companies.

Graphic, text and highway gates

Intelligent algorithms were also the subject of a conversation with inwestorzy.tv featuring Comarch Enterprise Solutions sector director Zbigniew Rymarczyk during the European Economic Congress.

– Artificial intelligence also makes mistakes. It's difficult to predict in which direction it will develop, for now we are at the beginning of this road. Certainly it has and will have a big impact on the economy, we decline it in all cases which is mainly due to the ChatGPT application. However, the first algorithms, which are the basis of neural networks, were created decades ago. Until now, we didn't have the tools, such as data or IT processing power, to take advantage of these capabilities – he said.

– AI is changing virtually every aspect of our lives. And, of course, one can think of, for example, tools for generating graphics or text in this context. On the other hand, a kind of intelligence is also the situation when we drive a car on the highway and no longer have to take out a payment card to pay at the toll gates. If we have the card connected to the application, the camera simply recognizes our license plate and the barrier automatically lifts – Zbigniew Rymarczyk adds.

Comarch has also been using AI solutions in software production for years, which help companies optimize many tedious processes and speed up work in production or in the warehouse. – We have seen trends related to this topic for a long time. We don't have general artificial intelligence, but we implement it in narrow, specific areas. For example, we use Comarch OCR, which allows us to automatically recognize text on a paper document and enter it into the system. Based on AI, our client can also determine the credit limit for its counterparty, based on its payment history. We also have solutions that are useful in commerce, such as image-based recognition of merchandise on a shelf in a store, which helps a sales representative verify the display of branded products at a given point. We are also working on our flagship tool, ChatERP, a communicator with an intuitive interface that will make it easier for users to communicate with our systems and perform tasks – Zbigniew Rymarczyk mentions.

Most professions will change

Artificial intelligence is sometimes seen by technosceptics as heralding the replacement of many professions by automated systems. On the other hand, proponents see it as having the potential to streamline work and create new jobs that are adapted to the realities of the market.

– A few years ago, a lot of people predicted that artificial intelligence would eliminate accountants in the first place. Nevertheless, accountants are still holding up very well, there is a demand for these services, which can be perfectly seen, for example, in the context of the production of financial and accounting software that we are developing at Comarch (...) Most professions will change. We will be able to work in a different - more creative, innovative, productive way. Through this, interesting products can be created. Maybe we will invent an engine that will significantly shorten the flight time to Mars - for example, to a few weeks. Every advance opens up new possibilities for us – assesses the Comarch vice president.

However, as Zbigniew Rymarczyk stresses, despite the interesting future created by artificial intelligence, it should be approached with caution and distance. – I read recently that in the US there was a duel between an AI-controlled F16 fighter and a second plane steered by an experienced pilot. The artificial intelligence won. We must make sure that, for example, aircraft or drones are not controlled by algorithms, because simulations have already shown that artificial intelligence often chooses radical solutions. Restrictions should be placed on the use of AI in certain fields – he says.

The entire interview with Zbigniew Rymarczyk can be viewed at the link.

You can read more about intelligent systems on Comarch ERP.