Artificial Intelligence vs Cloud Computing: Which One Should You Choose?

Business practices are changing faster than ever as companies introduce new digital technologies into their operations. Many new methods and technologies can help you grow your business and improve efficiency.

Two prevalent technologies taking over are artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing. While there are solutions that combine the two, they’re often too expensive to be taken on at the same time.

So, if you're looking to prepare your company for the future, this article is just what you need to make the best choice.

AI and its applications

Artificial intelligence is finding an application in many business practices across all industries, and has now reached the level where it can learn how entire manufacturing plants and businesses work. If you feed it with enough data, the AI will be able to streamline your entire operation.

It's much more versatile than any human employee because it's able to find correlations between different data channels. The ML system learns from the data, and the AI offers solutions to help improve efficiency and productivity.

AI applications have spread like wildfire, and today, most industries have advanced solutions designed to bring production and management to the next level. Coupled with technologies such as digital twin and IoT, AI can provide some incredible results and save business owners a lot of time, money, and effort.

Moreover, artificial intelligence is becoming popular because it can automate most business processes and reduce errors. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved, and it's slowly redefining how operations work. With new AI solutions released all the time, it's a technology that will lead industrial practices to the fourth industrial revolution, dubbed Industry 4.0.

AI is already used to help streamline production, increase customer engagement and satisfaction and increase ROI. However, it can improve operations through advanced practices such as predictive maintenance. There are companies producing industrial manufacturing software that offer an exceptional AI-powered solution for improving manufacturing and business practices.

Cloud computing and its applications

Cloud computing is a business practice that also provides a ton of benefits. It's basically the practice of renting online computing power to improve business practices without installing new hardware and network equipment.

It's a much more affordable way of scaling a business because it has short deployment times and offers all kinds of capabilities. The key to this technology is accessibility and flexibility. It practically allows businesses to move their entire operation online to a virtual office. That way, employees from all over the world can access the system and get the job done.

Cloud computing is an excellent option for businesses looking to scale their operations without exceeding their budget. Since you don't have to invest in new hardware, you can reduce IT costs as well. It provides a single platform where various team members can collaborate directly. Moreover, all future updates and maintenance are covered by the provider.

Benefits of AI and cloud computing

There’s no doubt that these technologies provide all kinds of business benefits. They reduce operating costs while improving customer user experience and other areas at the same time. Let's take a closer look at the benefits these technologies provide.

AI Benefits

Implementing AI into your business operation comes with all kinds of benefits that will help you grow your company in the long run, including:

1. Increased efficiency and productivity

AI is designed primarily to help businesses bring their operations to a new level. Artificial intelligence uses IoT sensors in manufacturing practices to find areas that can be improved. It also uses automation to complete repetitive tasks and leave more time for your employees to focus on other areas.

2. Shorter development times

The digital twin technology, which is a subset of AI can use the data generated by IoT sensors to recreate entire production lines, services, products or business processes in a digital environment. That allows your engineers to test products, features and ideas before the production starts, allowing you to speed up product development and release times.

3. Better customer service

Ensuring that your customers get the best possible service will help you grow your business and improve conversions. AI-powered tools can help get closer to your customer's needs and create solutions according to their wishes. In other words, it provides a way of customizing products and personalizing customer interaction.

4. Better monitoring

One of the best things about introducing AI into your business operation is its outstanding monitoring capability. IoT sensors placed on machinery and devices provide real-time data generation, allowing you to monitor every detail closely.

5. Human error reduction

Since most processes are fully automatic, AI drastically reduces human error. It takes control of most processes, and as machine learning systems learn over time, AI can make better decisions.

Cloud computing benefits

Cloud computing is much more affordable than any AI solution because it doesn't require any data to improve business practices. Here are the benefits you can expect when moving operations to a cloud:

1. Reduced IT costs

Once you move your systems to the cloud, all maintenance, updates and other costs are covered by the provider. You won't have to hire expert staff, install new hardware or think about maintenance ever again.

2. Scalability

Cloud computing allows you to scale up your business on the go. It's a flexible platform that can easily scale according to your current needs.

3. Collaboration boost

Once you move the operation to the cloud, all processes become available in a single dashboard, allowing your team members to collaborate on projects directly. Most clouds have file-sharing features, built-in chats and roles, allowing you to streamline communication and collaboration.

4. Automatic updates

Updating the legacy system usually costs a lot of money and comes with long downtimes. You won't have to worry about that with cloud computing since all updates and new features are developed and installed by the provider.

5. Flexible business practices

Cloud computing is the best choice if you want to bring your company to the international market because it provides a flexible platform. That way, all of your employees and team members can work together no matter where they are.

Final thoughts

These new technologies are redefining businesses far and wide, and are responsible for the so-called Industry 4.0. As a business, you want to adopt them as soon as possible to prepare your operation for the future.

However, most AI solutions are expensive, so you should start with cloud computing and introduce AI once you’ve sufficiently grown your operations.