From customer care to health, AI applied for practical use in daily life

Artificial intelligence (AI) appreciation day is on July 16 and the technology is growing in terms of usage and impact in the country, according to experts.

Indian startups and researchers have over the years worked on the technology to build practical solutions. “In the past year, the focus of AI has shifted to practical applications, with researchers, enterprises, and executives integrating this technology into everyday workflows,” said Rashid Khan, chief product officer and co-founder of Yellow.ai.

India will be the AI-use case capital of the world, said Nandan Nilekani, co-founder and chairman of Infosys, in May. "The Indian path in AI is different. We are not in the arms race to build the next LLM, let people with capital, let people who want to pedal chips do all that stuff... We are here to make a difference and our aim is to give this technology in the hands of people," he said.

From agriculture to health care, India has seen various use-cases emerging. A major area where generative AI (GenAI), which produces text, images, computer code and other content from existing information, has had a quick impact is customer service. GenAI has made conversational and intuitive AI chat and voice assistants a reality, say industry players.

Powered by LLMs, the core software of a new AI system, such applications not only handle basic customer service issues but tackle complex queries to create a natural, human-like flow in conversations.

“GenAI in customer service automates support for tasks such as order tracking, booking demos, resolving complaints and processing refunds. It also personalises interactions with customers by offering proactive product recommendations, tailored discounts and special offers,” said Khan.

AI analyses data more accurately to personalise customer experiences and automate manual processes. A technology called Natural language processing (NLP) has been helpful in it.

NLP has enabled conversational AI platforms to offer more user-friendly, conversational platforms and responsive customer support solutions, people from the industry feel.

In health care, AI helps in patient management, tailored treatments and early disease detection, said Ankush Sabharwal, founder and chief executive officer at CoRover, a conversational AI platform.

“AI algorithms have helped customer behaviour to provide personalised recommendations, improving customer experience and increasing sales. These systems predict demand more accurately, helping retailers manage inventory more efficiently and reduce waste. There is significant influence of AI and GenAI on productivity, creativity, and efficiency in a variety of industries,” said Sabharwal.

Ramprakash Ramamoorthy, who heads AI research at Zoho, the homegrown software-as-a-service company, said that 2023 was pivotal for AI in India.

Zoho by using AI has strengthened decision-making for customers and employees. “While digitally mature sectors like fintech and digital marketing are already benefiting from AI, homegrown innovations like UPI and ONDC are significantly enabling small businesses in their digital journey, in turn readying them for AI adoption,” he said, referring to Unified Payments Interface and Open Network for Digital Commerce.

Ramamoorthy said: “The positive impacts are evident: Increased productivity, reduced operational costs, and more contextual recommendations on the next best action to aid strategic decision-making. AI’s role will only expand, further solidifying its importance in India’s digital ecosystem.”