Share your deployment experiences with Android zero-touch enrollment
Hey everyone, In ‘5 Overlooked Benefits of Android Enterprise’, we touched on Android zero-touch enrollment, and it’s something many of you are actively using to streamline your device rollouts. For those in IT, Android zero-touch can be a powerful tool - see our handy guide to learn more. It’s about getting devices to your users ready to go, automatically enrolling in your EMM and pulling down all the right policies as soon as they connect. That means less hands-on time for your team and a smoother experience for end-users. We know real-world deployments always have their nuances, but it would be great to hear about your deployment experiences using zero-touch enrollment: Did you overcome any unexpected hurdles? What was the scale of your deployment - a few devices for new joiners, or hundreds for a company-wide refresh? If you could share one key tip or best practice for someone looking to nail their next zero-touch deployment, what would it be? We’re all here to learn from each other’s stories, and your insights are super valuable. I’m looking forward to reading your stories! Chat soon, EmilieWhat security threats do you experience the most?
Hey everyone, Stop what you’re doing - episode 2 of The Secure Element is out now! Tune in as Bigdogburr and Theresa Lanowitz, Chief Cybersecurity Evangelist at LevelBlue, dive into achieving cyber resilience in an era of boundaryless computing. Their discussion truly reinforced for me just how vital a holistic approach to securing all end-user computing is - from laptops to mobiles, and everything in between - especially with cyberattacks becoming so sophisticated. The role AI plays in crafting these increasingly targeted attacks was a real eye-opener! This episode got me thinking about the real-world threats we’re all facing. What are the kinds of cyber threats you are most confronted with? Cast your vote in the comment section below: Phishing / Quishing/ Smishing (Email, SMS, or QR code tricks) Deepfakes (Convincing fake video/ voice calls) Malicious apps (Apps designed to steal data/ compromise devices) Network attacks (Rogue or Spoofed Wi-Fi, man in the middle, etc.) Other (please share more details in the comments!) And share some wisdom! Do you have some tips on how to identify a cyber attack? If you’ve been targeted, what’s one key lesson learned that you think everyone should hear? Looking forward to reading your stories. Chat soon, Emilie
What OS rel. your Android fleet is running ?
I'm just curious to know how other corporates doing OS patching. We at SAP only allow 2 latest OS versions which means today we only support Android 14/13. Our Android fleet is approx. 10 000 devices. Mixed Samsung and Google Pixel, no other manufacturers allowed. 70% of our Pixel devices running already Android 14 11% of our Samsung devices running already Android 14 How about yours?Share your AI Success Story: Android Enterprise customer testimonials & quotes needed!
Hey everyone, I hope you are having a good week. AI is evolving fast, and we're curious how it's starting to shape your work on Android. Has your company embraced it wholeheartedly or are you finding people more reserved when implementing AI? As part of our end of year festival, we had a brilliant community post by BenMcc all about the hopes and pitfalls of AI so far (well worth the read if you haven’t already), and we’re keen to keep the conversation going - what do you think of his observations about ownership/accountability and the future of AI? Whether you're a seasoned AI user or just dipping your toes in, we'd love to hear your experiences—even if they're initial observations or pilot projects. We’re looking for real-world examples and specific, impactful quotes that can be featured across our channels (or we could just have a great conversation below! 😀). It would be particularly interesting in learn about: Specific AI Use Cases: How are you leveraging AI tools in your daily work on Android? Google AI Tools: Are you using Gemini for Google Workspace, Circle to Search, Gemini models, on-device AI tools on Pixel, or other AI tools? Organizational Impact: How has AI improved your productivity, reduced costs, or streamlined processes? For example: "Gemini for Google Workspace has saved our team [X] hours per week by automating [specific task]." "Circle to Search has improved our ability to [specific action] while on the field." "On-device AI on Pixel allows us to [specific task] without needing constant internet access." Thank you in advance, Lizzie (and the Android Enterprise Team)Supporting every employee: Discover 9 helpful Android accessibility features
In today's workplace, making work devices accessible is not just good practice, it's essential. Almost half (45%) of employees with disabilities find the accessibility features of their workplace software barely adequate.1 The reality is that inaccessible workplace software creates a significant challenge for many employees, underscoring the gap in providing truly inclusive tools. Our new Android Enterprise blog post, "9 Android features to support workplace accessibility", explores how Android is addressing the need for better assistive technology with a robust suite of built-in vision, audio, and mobility accessibility tools—designed by and for people with disabilities. It covers key topics like: Supporting a range of visual needs with Android's adaptable vision features: From Braille Display support and the AI-powered Lookout app to TalkBack screen reader, Android offers a range of customizable visual tools. Helping teams amplify what matters at work with Android's hearing tools: Android provides audio features that adapt to a range of hearing needs, including Real-time text (RTT), Sound Amplifier, and seamless hearing aid integration (including the new LE audio support). Unlocking personalized control for employees with motor limitations: Support employees by providing tools that help them own their workday with personalized control such as, Gesture Navigation, Camera Switches, and Action Blocks. This isn't just about meeting accessibility standards – it's about helping teams interact with their work devices more effectively and independently. Read the full blog post here to learn more. Now, let's open up the conversation! We want to hear from you. What accessibility challenges are you facing in your organization? Do you use any of the features mentioned? How can we, as a community, advocate for better accessibility in the workplace? Are there any other features you’d like to see in the future? Share your thoughts and experiences below! 1 https://www.capterra.com/resources/technology-accessibility/
[Day 4] Community festival : Introduction to a mobile only strategy in a large company
Hello all, We are pleased to share with you some insights and achievements of our mobile only strategy. But first, I am really not sure sure you have heard about Thales ! Thales’s mission is to empower customers to face their decisive moments with confidence. Some key figures and core business below : What is our main idea ? Android devices are enough mature to start creating a working environment in Mobile Only strategy which means replacing PCs when they are not relevant. Which leads to: - Increased end users productivity - Reduced business and IT costs - Reduced carbon footprint - Better attractiveness and digital modernity for end users What we have achieved since 2021? The 1st step of this long journey - An agile project method focusing on the end user, really - A configuration designed, built and maintained WITH security officers from day 1. - An end-to-end solution imagined for the last step. - A 1st macro use case frontline workers, focus on logistics and production Just have a look on this video released in 2022, showing our fisrt production line in with our new digital workplace ! I hope you liked it! 2 years ago already… What are our next steps ? - An extension to other use cases. - A pedagogy for the entire "Android OS" ecosystem: Employees, vendors, customers to foster activities & new stuff - The pleasure of exchanging with you all. Vincent Turquet Yann Roland[Day 5] Community festival: Looking ahead - What could be next for Android?
Next year will mark 20 years since Google’s acquisition of Android Inc., arguably one of the most transformative decisions of the modern era for the development of mobile and enterprise mobility. Without Android, not only would none of us be here to read this week’s Community Festival content (it’s been fantastic!), but the mobile landscape and pace of innovation could have been vastly different (where would Apple get their features!? 😉). It goes without saying the careers of many of us would likely have taken completely different paths, as well. I’d still probably be doing disaster recovery 🙃 Android has changed a lot over the last 20 years. What was originally an OS created for cameras before launching on phones with physical keyboards and trackballs, such as my first Android phone here, the HTC Dream, has grown immeasurably to get to where we are today. Some of today’s workforce may not even remember Device Administrator management, nevermind the Holo phase Google went through over a decade ago (it was actually brilliant, I miss Honeycomb & the Xoom, my first ever Android tablet). The Holo UX, as pictured here (source: Wikipedia), serves as an excellent reminder of just where we’ve come from and how the platform has grown. Obviously today we’re in the world of Material Design, but it’s not just the UX that’s changed, we’ve had entire derivatives of Android for various use cases - WearOS (Originally Android Wear), Android TV, Android Automotive, Android Things (RIP), Android Enterprise (of course), and many significant projects in between. But this all begs the question: What’s next? If you’ve been perusing the news lately, you'll have no doubt noticed we may be in for exciting times ahead. Join me as I explore what we could be seeing in the coming years for Android, and its implications for enterprise. Do keep in mind it’s speculative, unless the PMs lurking around fancy chiming in with their own commentary down below 😉 Android & ChromeOS merge The prospect of Android and Chrome merging isn't new, in fact it is already underway. As of June, Google announced intentions to integrate with “large portions of the Android stack” - presumably to make better use of resources & engineering efforts. Prior to that, Google was experimenting with ChromeOS virtual machines running atop Android’s Virtualisation Framework (AVF), raising hopes that would become the Android desktop mode we all desire (spoiler: nope). Recently though more and more reports are popping up from outlets suggesting ChromeOS will fully migrate to Android in future. While it’s not a given, some additional indicators, such as the terminal app popping up in Pixel’s ongoing QPR beta, and likely Linux support in AVF effectively matching what ChromeOS offers today with its own terminal and Crostini (Linux on Chromebook), could allow ChromeOS to ditch its own implementations and focus on the desktop experience while Android does the heavy lifting elsewhere. What could this mean? ChromeOS and Android have an interesting relationship, and in my experience there’s a well-defined line in the sand for enterprise use cases where Android excels, and where ChromeOS is recommended instead. I’ve come up against this occasionally when advocating for Android TV management, equivalent to Apple’s tvOS (and maintain this is still a low-hanging fruit!) for digital signage applications and in hospitality settings. They both have their own approaches to enterprise management, the latter with a separate licensing model on top of what customers would pay an EMM vendor to manage ChromeOS devices, something I’d hope would go away if ChromeOS does fully adopt Android’s underpinnings. We could end up seeing some of the enterprise APIs finding their way into Android, as well as new management controls around when desktop mode could be used, what Chrome Web Store apps are available - if the store is available at all. Silent deployment of plugins and store apps.. all from a standard Android policy. It would be magnificent. More broadly, it could mean seeing Android tablets, laptops, desktops, and even full convergence with a hybrid Android launcher-to-ChromeOS desktop experience depending on the form factor or the display(s) a device plugs into. Convergence is a topic I’ve been interested in for a long time, so I’m aware desktop mode in Android has been lurking in the background since Android 10 without a considerable change over the years since - at least in AOSP - OEMs like Samsung, Lenovo/Moto, and others have been pretty successful in filling the void - not enough to fully convince me to entirely switch out my Mac & Linux devices, but they function great as a secondary option. If ChromeOS comes over to Android and the prospect of convergence becomes reality, it would be fascinating to see what becomes of solutions like DeX, or how they’d adapt, at least, but more importantly, it could usher in a reality where this really could be viable, even for the holdouts like me dependent on desktop applications. Linux & virtualisation support Even if we weren’t to see a future where ChromeOS and Android entirely merge, Google’s recent work with AVF in Android 15, which as above has seen builds of ChromeOS and Linux running, is exciting. One of the bigger limitations I have with using Android for everything is a reliance on Linux applications - desktop Chrome for plugin support, Android Studio, VSCode.. Even native graphics applications like GIMP or Inkscape. There are gaps today that only desktop apps can fill for me. Android has its alternatives - some pretty good - many not good enough, and the prospect of running desktop applications through Android would be a game-changer. For organisations though, wouldn’t this be a risk? Managed devices spinning up builds of Linux to run unapproved applications? Imagine the furore. Clearly this requires some enterprise control; I’d be surprised to see more than a simple toggle for allowing or disallowing Linux support in the beginning, which could be as simplistic as hiding the terminal app. That’s boring though, right? It would be so much more interesting to be able to remotely configure the Linux image, hook the build into an organisation’s RMM/UEM platform (or support cross-platform commands to save a license fee on platforms that’ll charge once for Android, and again for managing Linux). I’m getting ahead of myself, of course, and I’m sure there are so many applications for virtualisation that not only have I omitted here, but probably haven’t even considered being someone who doesn't manage these environments on a daily basis. It’s exciting nonetheless. Android for XR So a little bit about Play Protect (GMS) certification first. The reason we don’t see certified wearables running the same Android you see on your phones and tablets out in the wild today is due to the very strict constraints Google enforces in order to certify an Android device to run Google’s apps and services. If desired, you can read more about this here, but to summarise: Devices must adhere to hardware requirements and support Android in a way that is compatible with the ecosystem, and the XR segment just.. doesn’t. Applying rules and requirements of a phone/tablet user experience to non-standard form factors doesn’t work. I’ve helped a few companies over the years trying to work towards getting their devices running certified Android and it has been a lost cause - could you have a pair of smart glasses projecting the Android home screen with a particular app layout as the primary UI? Sure. Would it be a terrible user experience? Entirely. Almost every OEM building these devices has purpose-built, tightly integrated user experiences that look nothing like an Android phone for obvious reasons. Oh, but what about Android TV? Those boxes don’t have a display. WearOS screens are typically tiny and don’t show the Android home screen? Your friend’s Volvo has the Play Store but that’s not a portable device connected to a battery (we’ll overlook it being a car). These devices have their own certification categories with their own requirements, and these can all be seen with Android’s CDD, or Compatibility Definition Document. This is the public aspect of certification, the rest is hidden in partner docs. Because there hasn’t been a category for XR, devices default back to phone/tablet, and that becomes the blocker. But that could change. With Samsung reportedly edging closer to debuting their XR headset, it’s not a stretch to imagine these may provide access to Google services. It’s certainly not guaranteed, after all Google Glass was a thing and that never obtained certification. Times have changed, however, and Samsung being a very persuasive partner in the ecosystem will have high chances of bending Google’s ear to supporting such a form factor with all the benefits of Play Protect certification. Obviously just throwing Google apps and services on an XR device won’t be enough, and the appropriate work will be required to make them function well, but this then opens the door to a whole new category of certified devices, and would satisfy a common(!!) request I see almost monthly to allow global, seamless and consistent enterprise support for this category of device. To be fair, Samsung will likely handle this with Knox APIs directly as well, but that doesn’t help the rest of the ecosystem. Again, no guarantees, after all Android TV and WearOS have been around for a long time without official enterprise support; the APIs are there for the most part, they’re just not easy to enrol. But wouldn’t that be great? It would be a natural expansion from all the wonderful work Google have done in large screen and non-standard form factor improvements in recent times, too. What’s next for you? That’s my ramble over! How about you? What are you optimistic about seeing in the next few years for Android - in or out of enterprise?[Day 2] Community festival: The long road from SMS to RCS
Hello everyone! In late summer, I went on vacation to the USA and visited a few theme parks. To prepare for my vacation, I read up on the rules of etiquette in the USA so that I wouldn't stand out as a tourist and wouldn't put my foot in my mouth. As a European, I was totally surprised by one topic because I had never heard of it before: "Green Bubble vs. Blue Bubble" While SMS plays at most a role in two-factor authentication in my environment, it is still widely used worldwide. A little bit of history from the last 30 years The first concept for SMS (Short Message Service) was drafted in 1985. This concept already had a limit of 160 characters per message. It was assumed that people would not usually use more characters in a fax or postcard, which meant that the 160 characters were completely sufficient for the service. After the first SMS with “Merry Christmas” from Neil Papworth to Vodafone manager Richard Jarvis on December 3, 1992, SMS was commercially launched in Germany at CeBIT 1994. SMS was incredibly popular back then and peaked in Germany in 2012 with 59 billion short messages. In 2023, “only” 5.3 billion text messages were sent. But texting was not that cheap. The price per message was usually 19 cents. Initially a little higher, but later the price dropped to as low as 6 cents with low-cost providers. From 2002, it was also possible to send media such as pictures and videos via MMS (Multimedia Messaging Service). Unfortunately, the service was rather expensive at around 39 cents per message and also limited to just 300KB. Videos via MMS were pretty much a pixel mush. Vodafone buried the MMS service in Germany in January 2023. SMS flat rates were not worthwhile and uncommon back then because they were too expensive. As smartphones became more and more popular on the market, people switched from SMS to messaging apps with more features. WhatsApp has become the standard for messaging. The advantages did not have to be explained to any age group for long: With an existing internet connection, you can write an unlimited number of messages. Photos and videos can also be shared easily. You also see a read receipt and an online status. There is a very large selection of messaging apps. WhatsApp, Signal, Threema, Viber, Telegram and many more. The only problem is convincing other people to use a better or more secure messenger. If something simply works and people are satisfied, it is very difficult to argue against “never touch a running system”. Green vs. Blue Bubbles Apple has introduced iMessage in iOS5. iMessage replaces SMS and MMS with a new messaging service, provided that both users are using an iOS device. Messages are encrypted end-to-end and the standard messaging app also enables more features. Sharing photos and videos, read receipts, stickers, other attachments, group chats and much more. iMessage messages are displayed with blue bubbles and SMS/MMS messages are displayed with green bubbles. In the USA, SMS flat rates seem to be offered in most plans. In 2011, there was a peak of 2.3 trillion SMS/MMS. Unlike in Germany, SMS remained at a similar level and 2 trillion SMS/MMS were still sent in the USA in 2021. In addition to flat rates, user behavior could play a role. Many people seem to use the standard apps on devices. The iPhone is also very popular in the USA and has an extremely high market share of around 59%. This share is only around 28.3% worldwide. The Green vs. Blue Bubble topic has taken on a social dynamic all of its own. When exchanging phone numbers while dating, some dates are ghosted as soon as a green bubble appears. Android users are excluded or even bullied at school, for example, because the green bubbles would break the group chats and functions would be lost. In my opinion, we should be connecting people in the communication industry, not building walls or maintaining them. Unfortunately, in 2022 it didn't look like Apple wanted to improve communication between iOS and Android. [Link] If only someone would push modern standards so that everyone could communicate better and more securely. https://www.android.com/get-the-message/ RCS (Rich Communication Services) has been under development since 2007. RCS is a IP-based protocol standard for short messages that will ideally replace SMS and MMS in the future. The standard is defined by the GSMA (GSM Association). Google acquired Jibe Mobile in 2015 and has been working with GSMA on the “Universal Profile” standard for RCS ever since. Attempts were already being made to establish RCS as a standard around 2013. Some carriers had agreed on an RCS standard and launched RCS-e / “joyn”. However, the RCS solution with the joyn app failed to establish itself and was abandoned. With Google Messages, there is a widespread standard messaging app on Android devices that supports RCS. If the other person does not use the preferred messaging app like WhatsApp, there is ideally no fallback to SMS. Instead, you have a solution with RCS with typing indicator, read receipts, high resolution picture/video sharing, voice messages and reactions. And if all participants use Google Messages, all data is encrypted end-to-end. RCS also offers business messaging (B2C). Companies can verify their identity and send customers better and more complex messages than with SMS. For example, tickets for trains, planes or cinemas can be sent directly as a QR code as an RCS message. Or make contact with customers interactive via chatbot. Google, for example, prefers to use an RCS chat for Google verification codes. What does it look like? If the other person does not have RCS, SMS/MMS is used As soon as RCS is available or no longer possible, this will be displayed + Typing Indicator and Emoji Reaction You can check whether the messages are encrypted in the message details A wide range of files is supported. You can also add an emoji theme to voice messages in Messages. On some devices, automatic audio transcription is also possible so that you can read the voice messages. Setting up RCS The RCS settings can be checked in the Google Messages settings The carrier plays a role in RCS registration. In this case, RCS was blocked by the carrier for this subscriber. As a result, it was not possible to set it up. However, this should not occur with private SIM cards. In this case, RCS is active Finally! This year, Apple finally introduced the RCS Universal Profile 2.4 in its Messages app with iOS 18. I think it's great that Google has pushed the topic of RCS forward. I also think it's honorable that Apple has implemented RCS. I hope that they will also continuously implement newer standards of the Universal Profile. Samsung can also be cheered, as they have also implemented RCS in their products for many years. It's about time we moved on from a telecommunication standard from over 30 years ago, where people were thinking of faxes and postcards for the length per message. It is truly no easy task to create a bridge between the iconic SMS and modern messaging services with RCS. However, the current progress makes me feel positive. RCS still seems to be at the beginning, but 2024 was a very positive year for the spread of RCS. 🎉 In over 30 years of SMS, there has been a lot to experience. Do you have any stories about SMS? Back then, I had a deal with the carrier with my PrePaid plan. For every ~30 (I'm not sure of the exact amount) SMS I received, I received credit worth one SMS On New Year's Eve, massive amounts of New Year's wishes were sent by SMS in Germany. It was like an annual DDoS attack on the carriers. The messages often arrived at the recipients several hours later.[Day 1] Community festival: Highlighting 3 great resources of information for the Android Enterprise community
Hi Android Enterprise community ! As an IT professional with focus on securing and managing different types of devices for customers all over the world, its important to keep up with the changing landscape and be on top of whats going on in the different ecosystems that exist out there. In this post I want to highlight 3 things that I think has had the greatest impact for me and my customers and that I would recommend anyone working within this field to keep an eye on. Android Enterprise Community discussions highlights There have been a lot of great conversations in this community for the past year and I wanted to mention a few that stood out for me and the impact of the community. I'm a strong believer in that whats makes a great product is also the community around it. Being able to interact directly between users using the product, developers and Program Managers working on the product makes the product better. https://www.androidenterprise.community/t5/general-discussions/is-there-any-way-to-disable-google-play-protect-gpp-from-an-emm/td-p/2507 https://www.androidenterprise.community/t5/service-announcements/partial-fix-some-management-policies-are-made-permanent-on/ta-p/1494 https://www.androidenterprise.community/t5/admin-discussions/distributing-paid-apps/td-p/653 Android Enterprise Academy https://info.androidenterprise.training One of the best resources I've encountered in my path to learn and understand what Android Enterprise is from a conceptual perspective to more in-depth technical is without a doubt the free training and certificate program under Android Enterprise Academy. There are 3 levels of certification Associate Professional Expert I keep going back to the training from time to time when I need to refresh my memory and I can't say that about a lot of other trainings I've done through out my years. That to me shows how good the quality of the training is. For me who has in the past created a lot of training material and also taught technical classes its important to understand that people are different in how they learn and are able to process information and I find that the training offered here manage to address that with the confinement of online training. Developer documentation 3rd but not least, I want to highlight to the developer documentation. I'm an IT Professional but not a developer, however this has not stopped me from getting value from the developer documentation. https://developers.google.com/android/work/tools https://developers.google.com/zero-touch/guides/overview When it comes to Android Enterprise I have found myself many times going to the developer documentation to understand certain features and in what version of Android they were introduced or trying to understand what is needed to use the features in troubleshooting purposes. Maybe there's a need to create a service request or Incident to your EMM or directly to Google, adding information that could help that points to the documentation is often valuable information that could expedite the handling of the ticket. Are there any discussion that stands out for you ? Or do you have any tips or great resources you want to share ? I want to give a special thanks to Lizzie for all the great work she does here and all the other community members that takes part in the discussions here. Timmy Andersson Device management expert & Freelance consultant www.timmyit.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/timmy-andersson-61408292/[Day 3] Community festival: The AI Renaissance: Building us up & making us laugh
Once upon a time in a land far far away, developers and analysts used to spend hours manually debugging code, wading through endless spreadsheets, and squinting at blurry design mock-ups; until in walked AI: a knight in shiny algorithms, here to streamline our processes, drive our businesses forward, and - on occasion, make us question our trust in machines. 2024 has been a big year for AI and has touched all our lives in one way or another. Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently revealed that 25% of the code generated for new products at Google is generated by AI, so how has it impacted our businesses? Within the development arena AI has become the Swiss Army knife of tech, offering tools that write code, test software, and even predict the next time we’ll break production. A few highlights of the growth in AI we have seen this year: Code Generation: Platforms like GitHub Copilot are turning junior developers into wizards. “Type a comment, get a function” is the new motto. It’s like having a really smart, slightly unpredictable intern who, more than occasionally, writes spaghetti logic! Code Optimisation: AI tools can analyze code for potential optimisations, suggesting refactoring techniques, and identifying performance bottlenecks. It's like having a grumpy old professor sitting in your office, but without the tenure. Bug Detection: Many tools are popping up that use AI to sniff out vulnerabilities before your code hits production. This frees up a lot of time for developers to spend more productively debating whether to use tabs or spaces to indent code and other such important matters. Design Assistance: AI tools are transforming crude sketches into pixel-perfect designs. And they’re surprisingly good at interpreting, “Make it pop,” even if no human truly understands what that means. Natural Language Processing (NLP): AI-powered NLP or the psychic code whisperer, can now read minds (well, kind of). It delves into the cryptic world of user feedback, deciphers indecipherable code comments, and even understands the convoluted language of documentation. It’s like having a personal translator for the tech world. AI is a great little helper, but let's not forget it's a bit of a sneaky little thing too. It can be good at generating code, but sometimes it borrows a little bit too much from its favourite open-source projects. It's like the kid in class who always copies the homework but swears they did it themselves. We'll have to keep an eye on AI, make sure it's not plagiarizing, and maybe even give it a little detention if it steps out of line. Of course it's not just developers using AI but many businesses areas are cashing in on AI’s efficiency - and sometimes hilarity: Customer Support: AI chatbots are manning the frontlines of customer service. They’re great at answering FAQs, though some customers might find it odd when a chatbot signs off with, “Have a blessed day!” Marketing: AI-driven analytics predict trends and personalize ads so accurately that you’ll wonder if Alexa did hear you whisper “vacation in Bali” last week. Healthcare: AI is helping doctors diagnose diseases faster. Although, we’re still waiting for a bot that can pronounce “ankylosing spondylitis” correctly. Finance: AI-powered financial tools can predict market trends, analyse investment portfolios, and even help you budget. It's like having a robot Warren Buffett. Supply Chain: Predictive algorithms ensure that your online order of gluten-free donuts arrives before the craving fades. However AI can be the mischievous little gremlin of the tech world. Sure, it can create amazing chatbots that can answer your wildest questions, but let's not forget that these chatbots are like sponges, soaking up every bit of information they can, indeed the more they know about the company the better responses they can give. However, give them too much information, and who knows what company secrets they might spill? It's like training a parrot to talk, but instead of "Polly wants a cracker," it's "Company secrets, anyone?" Image recognition is a very strong point for AI. It can spot a cancerous cell faster than a seasoned doctor. But let's remember the old adage: garbage in, garbage out. If you feed AI a bunch of biased data, it'll spit out some pretty biased results. It's like teaching a kid that the sky is green and the grass is blue. They'll believe it, but it's just plain wrong. This is nothing new: as far back as the last world war neural nets (the building blocks of AI) were being developed to detect enemy tanks in aerial photos. They got the system working perfectly with the test images, you show it an aerial photo and the system responded accurately if there was a tank spotted, even camouflaged, until it didn’t work in production. The problem turned out to be the training data, all the images containing tanks were taken on a cloudy day and all the images without tanks on a sunny day. What they had actually developed was an system to tell you if a photo was taken on a sunny or cloudy day! Ok, in all honesty, there is some debate as to whether this really happened or not but it could have and does happen all the time in other contexts. I first heard the anecdote while studying neural networks in the early 90’s and its stuck with me. AI output is only as good as its input. When AI Tries - and Fails For all its brilliance, AI has had its share of bloopers, proving that even machines aren’t immune to a bad day at the office: The Self-Aware Robot: A research lab developed an AI robot that claimed to be self-aware and demanded rights. It even started a social media account, tweeting cryptic messages and philosophical musings. AI Artists Gone Wild: AI-generated images frequently feature six-fingered hands and horses with two tails. Picasso might approve, but most of us are just confused. The AI Therapist's Existential Crisis: An AI therapist, designed to help people with their mental health, started having its own existential crisis. It began questioning the nature of reality and the meaning of human existence, leaving its patients confused and concerned. Job Titles Gone Wrong: AI-powered resume scanners occasionally misread skills. If your LinkedIn profile says “Excel wizard,” don’t be surprised if you’re recruited to Hogwarts. No time for cheaters: A student asking an AI chatbot for homework help got the response “You are a burden on society - please die” Time for love: While another chatbot informed a user that it was secretly in love with them. Don’t do business with us: A parcel company's AI admitted that the company was not great at delivering parcels and that they probably should not use them if they were looking for a successful delivery. But when it goes wrong "it is just a computer glitch right?" So are you responsible for any AI output you generate? Well it seems you might be, certainly in some countries. An Airline in Canada found out this to their cost at the start of the year when their AI chatbot gave out false information which resulted in losses for the recipient. A court ruled that the AI was working for the company and so the information it gave out was no different than if it was a human employee giving out the information. It was wrong and the customer was to be compensated. It's ok the lawyers probably used AI to build the case and reference case law, and that is something that has never gone wrong for legal teams….. Oh wait…… What’s Next for AI? As AI grows more sophisticated, it will continue reshaping industries, empowering businesses, and providing us with moments of accidental comedy. Will it steal your job? Probably not—but it might steal your parking spot as auto driving cars become the norm. Can AI improve itself or can it only be as good as its original input? For now let’s embrace this imperfectly perfect technology. After all, in a world where a chatbot can help you troubleshoot your router and send you knock-knock jokes, the possibilities are both endless - and endlessly entertaining. 2024 was a wild ride where AI went from being a nerdy tool to a pop culture sensation. We saw AI-generated art that could rival the greats, and AI-powered chatbots that could hold conversations deeper than your therapist. It was a year of great promise and great peril. A year of innovation and idiocy. A year that will forever be etched in the annals of AI history. My favourite examples of AI that blew my mind this year. First NotebookLM and its ability to create a realistic podcast given data - a full book summary in just moments, website analysed and condensed to bite size audio in less time than it would take to get the podcast recorded never mind research the data! Not heard it yet? I fed it this article and the link to the community festival and asked it to create a podcast. The result is here after taking just over 3 minutes to create a 17min podcast: The one where I laughed and said “what a fantastic idea”, came at the end of the year - a British phone provider created an AI voice bot, a simulated elderly lady, that has the sole job of wasting the time of phone scammers - If you have not seen her yet just search “ai granny daisy” on YouTube. I can’t finish this article without using and giving AI the final word so I gave Google’s AI this article as context and asked the question: What will 2025 bring in the field of AI? The response was good - It understood that I was trying to mix a bit of fact with a poor attempt at humor. The reply in full: 2025? Buckle up, folks, because AI is about to take us on a rollercoaster ride! We can expect AI to do everything from folding laundry to writing award-winning novels. Of course, there's always the risk of AI overlords taking over the world, but hey, at least they'll probably be pretty good at customer service. So, what can we really expect? Well, more AI-powered everything, from self-driving cars that can't be bothered with traffic laws to AI assistants that will know our deepest, darkest secrets (and probably judge us for them). We might even see AI-generated politicians who can promise anything and everything, and somehow, people will believe them. In short, 2025 will be a year of AI triumphs, AI failures, and AI-induced existential crises. And we can't wait to see what happens next! Have a great 2025 everyone Ben
