As we struggle to figure out our journey to Singapore (though as Kiharu MP Hon Ndindi Nyoro lately said it we would be advised to be keener on South Korea economic model and trajectory than Singapore though a mix of two is better having personally keenly studied the two in economic leaps and governance for more than three decades now; and others that have overcome severe chronic economic difficulties who include Japan, Germany Taiwan, Malaysia and Thailand ) some clever guys already know that being on top with AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology will give them an edge in commerce, economic growth trajectories, military, geopolitics, creativity and innovation, Education, Research, Engineering, Medicine etc.
China is one such, and though the US is ahead in the AI race at the moment, China is figuring out how best to get ahead and stay there. They have started within the school system, where, from very early, pupils have to mandatorily start studying AI all the way up to higher levels of education. If you examine some of what Donald J Trump did quickly upon getting elected for a second term in office as US president, he was quick to roll out a programme on AI greater development, and he involved some of the top technology leaders and their companies. He has been keen to provide an enabling and empowering environment for AI to thrive and grow. His other policies may have some unique challenges and significant concerns, but for once, he deserves a lot of kudos. There are ethical risks and other challenges that obviously need to be looked at, but there should be no hurdles placed in the way of AI development.
Woe to Africa if we are again left behind the way it happened during the Industrial Revolution era. The regrets will be in another set of centuries. This time, at least, education and knowledge are better and more widespread. So, it’s time to win the AI race. It’s possible to be at the top or among them.
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Kenya, we can. We have so many gifted people and a great depth of education and knowledge. It is possible to benefit from AI developments. It is very possible that Kenya and Kenyans can and should be part of developing the technology and greatly use it for their own development. The same extends to other African countries and developing nations, who should not complain in future that they are left behind for not taking the chances. The global economic architecture has had and still has significant issues to address, but here is such an intrusive and opportunity-opening technology that can be easily tapped by any country to build competitive industries as part of the efforts to claim reasonable and fairer opportunities in the global commerce and economy. China knows all this too well, and they have already smelt the coffee.
Just for some highlights, here are just a sample of things personally, I have done or already figured out on AI after a lot of research and using it even on a very small scale, as yet:
- It makes business processes efficient, more agile and quicker to adopt more technologies, including emerging ones.
- It saves a lot of time and money. Previously, I would each day buy and read numerous local and foreign newspapers and magazines to read during my free time . Nowadays, unless interested in following up on a story article or feature in a specific publication, I simply get into an AI platform early in the morning and ask for summaries of key news items in Kenya and the globe, target other information of interest such as politics, economies, Stocks, Financial Markets, financial instruments, commodities, technology and trends, etc. Within an hour, I have all the information I need.
- It makes it easier to discover new things. There is a lot to learn in the universe, and we are limited in time and even resources. With AI, you quickly gain valuable knowledge and skills quite easily and efficiently.
- A secret which is not a secret anymore; it makes it easier to do business, trade and do so much which would hitherto require high knowledge, skills and often great specialisation. For instance, I personally (though knowledgeable in Finance for many years already) use it to study financial markets on a global scale, starting with Kenya, and study stocks for opportunities, trends, etc. It takes a few minutes to know so much on a global scale and make quite informed decisions. Previously, one would have to go through loads and loads of information and data from numerous sources to gain useful insight, for instance, to help make informed investment decisions. AI tools simply give you this fast and in useful summaries as you wish.
- It will help build greater AI and technologies. Undisputable!
These are just a few of the opportunities available from AI. There are many more. This was just a highlight to build a gist of opinion that there are many advantages available from AI.
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There are valid concerns that AI will lead to the destruction of jobs and create massive unemployment and inequalities in societies, worse than they already exist. One has to remember that this technology, like precious ones, will have its own set of problems, but the benefits will outweigh what could be temporary challenges. Yet still it is a technology that has come at its needed time and thus is unstoppable. Moreover, the following are valid observations or positive consequences of the valid concerns about the adverse effects:
- It will create new sets of jobs. This is quite obvious.
- Why do we have governments? Universal income for all must kick in. Governments have to be more accountable and responsible: Let them kill corruption and have efficient and effective governments, and incomes will be so good. How?
(a) Let companies and businesses tap into AI aggressively and make more money. Deploy progressive taxation. Deploy those taxes efficiently and effectively.
(b) Devoid of corruption, there will be a lot of money to provide for public good, such as:
(i) Universal Education from the point of entry to the Tertiary levels.
(ii) Universal Health Coverage with an efficient and fair system.
(iii) Public works in more and better infrastructure, such as roads, airports, ports, power, etc.
This is to name just a few.
- Efficiency and effectiveness mean more time saved and more opportunities for doing other things, and in total, these can aggregate to bigger economies. People will have more time for leisure, thus spending more on tourism (an ever-growing sector). Therefore, more jobs in such sectors and better-paying ones. It has to be remembered that sectors like tourism have many good linkages to other sectors, such that the flow of money is not just in it. It supports a lot of sectors and industries.
- It will be easier to fight and eliminate corruption (remember, corruption is aided more by inefficient systems, opaque ones and such, which AI tools can help eliminate). Therefore, a lot of resources will be saved.
- It will be easier to push for better governance all over the world, with the speed of flow of information, opening opacity to scrutiny and efficiency injected, helping to tap a lot of resources on a global scale.
- Connectivity across the world will be made easier, and thus commerce will become more democratic and easier to break into than before from any location and any part of the world.
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One can go on and on, suffice it to say that with the trends that are being seen, AI is unstoppable, and it will unlock a lot of opportunities.
A practical example I have been involved in. I used to struggle a lot looking for databases and even having to pay for so many of them for fundraising for ventures and causes. Training staff and having them do this work was hell on earth. Today? I don’t even need staff to do so. With AI, I need a few minutes to mine data and do the concept notes and the proposals. What I do is train some assistants to help do that easily, as I concentrate on strategy and developing useful networks and partnerships. AI has made the processes quite easy and fast. Therefore, it is possible to keep costs well managed and efficiency and effectiveness improved greatly.
So what else is possible with AI? A lot. What we need are responsible and accountable governments so that we have shared prosperity through universal incomes borne out of responsible and responsive taxation.
The technology isn’t perfect (it’s human-made), but obviously, it will keep improving each day. Moreover, it is more revolutionary than previous ones (agriculture, industrial, and information technology).
By CPA Harrison Mwirigi Ikunda
Nairobi, Kenya
The Writer is a Political, Economic and Social Analyst and Commentator
He is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Kenya Motor Repairers Association (KEMRA) and also plays a significant role in the Renewable Energy sub-sector in Kenya and global campaigns on matters of Climate Change, and a board Chairman of a Charitable organization. He was recently appointed Global Strategy & Fundraising Director for Sleh Global (https://www.slehglobal.org), an organisation in Renewable Energy, Energy Sources Innovations, Clean Cooking & Waste Management.
hm.ikunda@gmail.com, hmikiara@gmail.com, info@kemra.co.ke, kenyamotorrepairersassociation@gmail.com,
insurefortune@gmail.com, pefaafrica@gmail.com
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