Count a ton of money and conduct exploration in the mine: how robots have already found a place among us

    Robots have already ceased to be heroes of science fiction films and have been living among us for many years. We just do not always notice it.

    However, there are more and more tasks that we are ready to give into their metal (or plastic) “hands”. As a result, the efficiency of many processes is growing, and with it there are fears of job cuts. According to the forecasts of the McKinsey Global Institute, by 2025, robots armed with artificial intelligence can replace up to 100 million workers.



    However, not all experts share this attitude. A few weeks ago, the Skolkovo Robotics conference was held, and the participants in the plenary session “Robots among us. Robotics and artificial intelligence in the life of a modern person ”just discussed the development prospects of the industry and how this will affect our lives.

    The session was attended by the Chairman of the Skolkovo Fund Arkady Dvorkovich, First Deputy Chairman of the Management Board of Sberbank Lev Khasis, General Director of VIST Group Dmitry Vladimirov and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Promobot Alexey Yuzhakov. We share their theses in our selection.

    About the functional benefits of robots


    • Robots are already actively entering our lives. It's just that we do not always notice this, because they can have different forms and types. For example, in Sberbank less and less credit decisions are made by people. Automated systems help to deal with potential fraud, track the interests of customers and prevent additional risk from cybercriminals.
    • Software robots are already actively used for organizing workflow. In particular, the processing of documents in digital form is carried out by robots. But physical robots are also widely used. Every year, we [at Sberbank] count about 100 thousand tons of cash. A robotic recounting station can process more than half a ton of money during the day. This is about three times higher in labor productivity compared to humans.
    • One of the most promising sectors of the real sector for the introduction of robotics is the mining industry. Already now projects are being successfully implemented for the extraction of solid minerals without the use of living labor.
    • Today, there is an obvious need for robotic underground technology, for example, in underground mines. Robots in the mining industry will make miner's work safe, but at the same time maintain productivity. For mining companies, the situation is unacceptable in which the robot will be safe, but at the same time less productive than traditional equipment.

    On current issues of robotics


    • Russia is lagging behind in the industrial use of robots. When money is “expensive”, it is more natural to save a substantial part of the living labor force, rather than investing in robotics. Of course, these investments would pay off, but on a specific business model this may not work.
    • The introduction of robots is highly dependent on the training of specialists. Now the qualifications of specialists, in particular, drivers, drivers, are falling. New professionals who will control robots and remote equipment are the future of the industry.
    • Now the service robotics market, according to the estimates of the International Association of Robotics, is growing many times faster than industrial robotics. This is a kind of thin needle with which we in Russia can flash global space. It’s great to set trends in service robotics not only in our country.
    • Service robots in business provide additional opportunities. Promobot created and patented its speech recognition system, and today we can train the neural model.

    About industry prospects


    • It is believed that robots will threaten the employment of people, but rather they will create highly skilled jobs. In general, it is proved that artificial intelligence in working with humans is more useful to use than just a robot.
    • The culture of interaction with robots in a public environment will not take long to form, much faster than before adaptation to new technologies took place. However, this will take years, not months.
    • The development of startups and robotics scientists should be in demand by business. It is necessary to support those organizations that are ready to use these robots, performing the functions of a test site, but in real conditions.
    • Any experience in implementing robots in B2B and its competent assessment capitalizes not only the supplier, but also the customer. Through a quick search of hypotheses, everyone can find a solution that will be effective.

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