Brisbane 2032: Creating lasting impact through transformative infrastructure
Aurecon shares insights on how the 2032 Brisbane Games can deliver legacy infrastructure and lasting economic, environmental and community value.
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If you've spent the past year watching the barrage of groundbreaking AI developments from the sidelines, 2024 is undoubtedly the year to act.
As we cast a retrospective glance at a year predominantly characterised by experiments, pilots, and governance deliberations, 2024 is poised to be the turning point where early visionaries and technology trailblazers translate their investments into tangible outcomes.
If you have not leant in, the time is now, as those who have seized the initiative stands on the brink of an outsized advantage.
So, what does 2024 have in store? What key trends are we likely to see? How can you position your organisation to stand at the juncture where decisive action propels you into the forefront of innovation and strategic gains?
At Aurecon, it was our strategic decision to lean into generative AI as part of our ongoing digital transformation. This led to the establishment of a Generative AI team and the development of solutions that drive efficiency and improve quality.
Recall is our first intelligent assistant – a retrieval augmented generation (RAG) solution that is connected to our enterprise knowledge base. Recall efficiently surfaces valuable information from the wealth of Aurecon’s knowledge to provide detailed answers to user queries about complex design problems or technical challenges. A key challenge in the development of Recall was ensuring that all information remained on shore and secure. We worked closely with Microsoft to achieve this.
Generative AI solutions can and are having an impact, the potential is not just limited to solutions like above, which provide enhanced access to knowledge. Using the models to understand complex projects and design problems to augment and amplify the potential of our people is where the real value is.
The potential economic impact of generative AI is increasingly well understood, what remains to be seen is if organisations are prepared to leverage and take advantage of the advancements or if new entrants will be a disrupting force. A potential risk emerging is paralysis around governance, ethics and responsible/explainable AI that can slow adoption or grind it to halt, while this space is maturing a careful balance must be struck to ensure that innovation can occur at pace while be safe.
A report by Qualcomm indicates that generative AI economy could be worth up to $7.9 trillion, reflecting the enormous potential across various sectors. From Qualcomm: 'generative AI has the potential to improve productivity by solving problems outside the capabilities of humans, making humans more efficient and/or automating functions performed by humans, but it goes much further.'
Amplifying the potential of people, Qualcomm also highlights the potential to 'propose new designs and solutions to previously unsolvable problems.' Going beyond the standard content creation or customer service-based use case which are typical.
Similarly, Mckinsey’s research suggests that automation is set to be accelerated by generative AI and could increase the share of automate work hours in the US to 29.5 per cent by 2030, up from the previous pre-generative AI estimate of 21.5 per cent.
"Our estimate of the technical potential to automate the application of expertise jumped 34 percentage points."
McKinsey & Company
The common element between these reports (and the many other) reports and research is that change is coming, and our productivity expectations will evolve with that change. As always there will be winners and losers and it is incumbent on organisations to decide whether they will follow or lead.
Adopters of generative AI will face significant ethical and governance challenges. The principal concern is the management of data privacy, security and ensuring that these systems respect privacy laws which are undergoing significant reform here in Australia.
Adhering, understand and ensuring compliance will be crucial across 2024, especially for organisations that operate globally. Moreover, the risk of data breaches and unauthorised use of personal data is a constant concern. Organisations must develop robust data governance frameworks to address these issues, ensuring that their AI systems comply with legal and ethical standards regarding data use and protection.
Significant challenges also lie in the realm of content authenticity and intellectual property rights. Generative AI can create content that is indistinguishable from human-generated work, raising concerns about the potential for plagiarism and the unauthorised use of copyrighted material.
While this is particularly relevant in creative industries where AI-generated music, art, or literature could infringe on existing copyrights. Organisations need to establish clear guidelines and tools to ensure that the content generated by AI respects intellectual property laws and the rights of original creators. These same issues can easily bleed over into other fields where original human-generated work can be augmented by generative AI solutions.
Finally, the issue of bias and fairness in AI-generated content and decisions is a critical governance challenge. AI systems can perpetuate and even amplify existing biases present in their training data or connected knowledge sources, leading to unfair or discriminatory outcomes. This is especially relevant in functions like recruitment, law enforcement, and finance, where biased AI decisions can have serious repercussions.
Organisations must prioritise the development of fair and unbiased AI systems, which involves regular auditing of AI models for bias, diversification of training data, and incorporating ethical considerations into the AI design and deployment process. Addressing these issues is not only a matter of regulatory compliance but also of maintaining trust and ethical responsibility.
Looking ahead, it's clear that generative AI is not just a fleeting trend but a fundamental shift in business and technology. The ability of AI to automate tasks, enhance productivity, and create new products and services marks a new era in business operations. However, as with any revolutionary technology, there are challenges to be navigated, especially regarding ethical usage and integration into existing systems.
Perhaps the biggest barrier to adoption is not the generative AI at all, but the willingness and preparedness of people and technology impacted. What is clear is that the organisations that move first and make progress are best placed to succeed in an environment where there will ultimately be winners and losers.
Group Director, Digital & AI
Aurecon shares insights on how the 2032 Brisbane Games can deliver legacy infrastructure and lasting economic, environmental and community value.
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