AI in the Time of COVID-19

AI is growing at an unprecedented speed. Economy also is changing to reflect new intersections and sustainability parameters that, in some cases, are only being perceived now by AI models and data scientists. 

During this pandemic, home office has challenged many systems that previously were perceived as necessary: dress codes, Wi-Fi speeds, meetings, working hours, communications systems and of course, workspaces, productivity and trust. Students all over the world physically left their schools, friends and teachers, and were plugged into a nonstop system of education, payments and measures. Who learned and what they learned is still unknown, but class times in physical schools will now be limited to one or two days per week, a normal process to reduce environmental pollution and prepare for new challenges. With AI, we can measure and predict which teachers, courses, and schedules will be the most efficient in the new world. 

In 2020, we have all experienced an unprecedented global change. New ways have appeared to obtain things and continue with our lives. From my perspective, this is the Humanity 2.2 connection point. 

Without a vaccine for COVID-19, there will be no stop in infections. But there is also no stoppage in data generation. This has made AI much bigger and more capable than ever. AI has become the fastest and most inclusive apprentice ever considered for human change. New trends are being and will be processed throughout this year, and investments will show who collapses and who will be part of the new future. Big Data for COVID-19, pandemic rates, death and severity rates, openings, sales, shutdowns, cancellations and bankruptcies will all be processed, stored and filed  using new technology and new ways of making decisions. 

Ten years from now, GDP or PIB will be calculated not only considering economic fundamentals but also health factors and infection risks related to sanitary, or unsanitary, conditions in daily life. The effect of all these new variables will be to demonstrate the true viability of countries, resorts, public transportation and health facilities. The simple algorithms that consider the variables during the lockdown and their effect over time, economic changes and damage will be part of a new decision-making model for the world in this 2.2 reality. 

For the first time, a new type of “vaccine” will be developed for countries, corporations and people and this vaccine will be economic in nature, capable of managing all, some or a few factors, just as it did during this pandemic without anyone noticing it. The backup strategies for corporations, big business and large investments will include quarantine contingencies through the addition of solid, flexible and reasonable plans in laws and contracts. 

In the meantime, as a customer, you have already decided who will reopen or close in the next 24 months. This includes stores, producers, production plants, distribution chains and also tourism destinations and education. During the quarantine, you made decisions that defined food choices, travel possibilities, which airlines are needed, the appeal of cruises, hotel sizes, hosts and risks. The same thing happened with your choices on YouTube, Spotify, Netflix, Amazon and all other streaming content and production. 

This 2.2 reality also will be the first and the last time that home office happened without KPIs, expectations, and objectives at every level and for all organizations. The next time, metrics, rules, and also proficiency in this type of situation will be considered when determining what profile of employee will be hired or dismissed as organizations adjust. I can imagine companies using rating sessions to determine good and bad behavior during this quarantine and also asking for AI help in how to measure working hours and other factors. Teaching will change from the traditional school environment to a new environment in which home office represents not only a possibility but a way to survive when everything is closed. 

As humanity is connected in the 2.2 reality, this will become the basis for Humanity 3.3 as design, decisions and algorithms show us where we are heading to. Our computers in this quarantine represented not only a tool. For some, they were also a partner, an asset and an investment that made you more or less capable. 

This is the first of some articles I will share in order to analyze where we are heading and how AI has become the last-frontier cruise ship transporting us to Humanity 3.3. Humanity will no longer be able to continue without ventilators. This time, unfortunately, they were not plugged in to an AI solution and learning model. What a shame.