WOW-cases of AI usage in Marketing, Olympic games, and traffic control.

Hi there, reader, AI enthusiast! 👍

And what a privilege it is for me to burst into your new week and start it with a fresh update from the world of new technologies! 🥹 For all the newcomers: my name is Max, this is a weekly update on the world of AI, and the reading will take about 3 minutes of your time 🕰️ 

Let's discover together where progress leads us today! ⛹️‍♂️

1. AI in Marketing 2024  🤓

Let me show you what 2024 has seen in AI-driven marketing campaigns across various industries. Here are some standout examples:

1. Cosabella's AI-driven Ad Optimisation: Cosabella, a retail apparel and fashion brand, has empowered an AI algorithm named Albert to manage its paid search and digital marketing efforts. This AI implementation has boosted the brand's social media return on ad spend by 50% while reducing ad spend by 12%​. Who else tried it?

2. Volkswagen's Predictive AI for Ad Buying: Volkswagen has implemented AI to automate its ad-buying decisions, focusing entirely on data-driven insights. This shift to AI has helped Volkswagen reduce hidden costs previously incurred through media agencies and increased sales by 20% from their dealerships​. Effie is waiting!

3. Tomorrow Sleep's AI Content Generation: The mattress company Tomorrow Sleep used AI to significantly enhance its content marketing strategy. By employing AI-powered tools like MarketMuse, Tomorrow Sleep increased its organic website traffic from 4,000 to 400,000 visitors per month, improving its search engine rankings​. Talk to your SEO managers.

4. Netflix's Personalized Recommendations: Netflix continues to refine its AI-driven personalisation techniques, using viewing data to tailor recommendations and even promotional artwork to individual user preferences. This approach enhances user engagement and helps maintain high subscription rates by making each user experience unique​. You feel it, right? :)

5. Heinz's AI Image-Generated Campaign: Heinz launched a marketing campaign using AI-generated images. They employed DALL-E 2 to create unique visual content for social media and print ads, demonstrating how AI can bring scalability and creativity to traditional advertising formats​. I used DALL-E 2 too :)

2. Faster – Higher – Stronger – AIer 🕊️

With the coming Olympic Games, questions about utilising technologies in the event were gathering quite a lot of attention. Finally, the strategy from the International Olympic Committee 🏅 has been revealed. It is planned to incorporate artificial intelligence into various aspects of sports: “Today we are making another step to ensure the uniqueness of the Olympic Games and the relevance of sport. To do this, we have to be leaders of change,” IOC President Thomas Bach said at a press event, according to The Independent.

The plans include utilising AI for promising talent identification, personalised training, and ensuring fairness in judging. A separate topic was raised: the AI capabilities of protecting athletes from online harassment and enhancing broadcast quality for people watching the Games from home 🏠 

However, the IOC's announcement comes amid controversy over plans by Paris Olympics organisers to deploy AI-powered surveillance systems (AI cameras) for security purposes such as abandoned packages 📦 or crowd surges 🙅🏻‍♂️.

Not sure if they will have enough time to implement all of the listed innovations within just under 100 days, but I find even a partial implementation quite iconic for the history of the Games 🦾

3. Fool Britannia 😱

Thinking about a comeback for an iconic hidden camera show? Interested in starring in it yourself? Well, if you're not keen on that kind of fame, here's a tip: when cruising through South Gloucestershire, keep your eyes on the road 🛣️ 

The local Council has introduced AI-powered camera vans 📽️ to detect drivers using handheld mobile phones and individuals not wearing seatbelts. The images taken are analysed using AI, flagging potential offences for review by trained operators. The first 12-hour experiment identified 150 ‼️ seatbelt violations and seven cases of distracted driving.

Although currently used for survey purposes only, the data will inform future road safety initiatives. With 425 injuries, including 69 fatalities or serious injuries, reported on South Gloucestershire roads in 2023, authorities aim to curb dangerous driving.

Let's hope this tech nudges everyone towards safer habits and stay focused on the road ahead – whether in the spotlight or not 🚏

Hopefully, the new technologies don’t stop surprising us - they never will 🤞 (and I mean in a good way). They change with us, and we change with them. I think that is the beginning of a beautiful friendship! 

Stay curious, reader! 🚀

Max

Xx