The following article has been written with special contributions from Saad Munir (CEO HexaClicks) and Haris Shahzad (Founder dukandaar.com).

“There has been a 14X increase in the number of

active AI startups since 2000.” (Forbes)

Online shopping trends are changing rapidly as Artificial Intelligence [AI] allows businesses to become customer focused like never before. Businesses are now able to address customer preferences more closely because of improved connectivity and data mining processes. “We have entered a new era of analytics with machine learning and artificial intelligence algorithms beginning to deliver on the long-promised advancement into self-learning systems,” said Stephen Brobst, CTO of Teradata, at the Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Session organized by Telenor Pakistan.

These days every business plan has the term “Artificial Intelligence” in it, and there is no doubt about the real opportunities it has to offer. The abundance of big data now makes the application of AI possible in a wide range of services.

With the escalating digital transformation, and Artificial Intelligence taking over, startups and businesses are now using it to improve online shopping experience. AI is allowing e-commerce businesses to record customer behavior patterns, personalized shopping experience, provide virtual assistance, customize search results, design a more efficient sales process, recommendations for customers, better customer-seller dialogue, and for managing customer reviews. AI is actually a great support for businesses and consumers alike. 

Artificial Intelligence: End of the human race OR Beginning of evolution?

Below are some of the business opportunities enabled by Artificial Intelligence:

✔Data collection and Data mining

AI is embedded in search engines, social networks, gaming apps, online shopping stores and what not! It’s job here is to collect data and record the behaviour of users which is then used to make product suggestions in the form of targeted advertising. Chicago-based Narrative Science, has developed a program called Quill that provide users with a report of the data in story form using AI and it was able to raise $11.5 million! And this is just one example of how startups are generating business from expanding technology.

✔Customer support solutions

Gone are the days when companies had to hire teams for customer services after spending recurring hiring costs. Now, this job can be done by a 24/7 active Chatbot in a better, faster way. Chat bots give an impression of real time customer support by answering basic questions and helping them through online shopping journey.

✔ Predictive analysis

AI is being used to not only record but also interpret consumer behavior on the internet and interpret it to make suggestions for the user such as product suggestions. Tailored content might sometimes be seen as a negative aspect of browsing but actually it saves a lot of time by only showing the content based on user preferences and ensures better customer experience.

AI is embedded in search engines,

social networks, gaming apps,

online shopping stores and what not!

✔ Digital Marketing

Digital marketing is like oxygen to businesses because of the number of advantages it has but chiefly it allows access to multiple markets. It is transforming the advertising industry as businesses are quickly shifting from traditional methods of advertising to digital marketing. So much so that it is safe to say that Digital marketing has successfully taken over traditional marketing as It is found to be the most efficient and effective way to reach customers.

One of the key aspects of successful marketing is providing good customer experience by showing them relevant content. Well, Artificial intelligence is here just for that. From collecting data, analyzing it, learning from it and making suggestions based on it, AI has taken control of everything!

More and more Artificial Intelligence companies can be seen emerging in Pakistan and around the world. Some of the Pakistani AI companies include 10Pearls, Cubix, CodeJunkie, Liquid Technologies, Bazingo Inc. Pte. Ltd., UmerQaiser.com, Saremco Tech, Punjani Inc. and NorthBay. These companies are providing services like data mining, automation, bot creation, End-to-end mobile, enterprise, and web product development services, customization and integration of complex enterprise-level solutions, business intelligence analytics, advanced web and mobile solutions etc.

5 major online opportunities for E-commerce Startups.

Artificial intelligence is the new face of marketing, innovation, productivity and profitability. Implementing Artificial Intelligence in to your business will ensure better shopping experience for your customers and provide you with the insights it needs to succeed.