From Raw Data to Actionable Insights: AI’s Impact on Data Analytics


Snigdha
By Snigdha | Last Updated on April 4th, 2024 9:13 am

It’s a world where an overwhelming amount of data is generated every second of every day as people have embraced the digital world in a way that was unimaginable until recently. This abundant raw data, though as valuable as gold, needs to be contextualized and structured before it can be used to draw any meaningful insights.

This is where we truly see the impact of artificial intelligence on data analytics and the emergence of AI-based no code development platforms. AI's ability to process, analyze, and interpret raw data has revolutionized the field of data analytics, enabling organizations to extract actionable insights that drive informed decision-making only through AI data analytics collaboration. Ahead in this blog, we discuss how AI and data analytics can be used together to transform raw data into actionable insights establishing the profound impact of AI on data analytics.

The Evolution of Data Analytics

Data analytics has evolved significantly over the years. Traditionally, data analysts manually processed and analyzed data, often limited by the scope of their tools and expertise. As data volumes grew exponentially, it became clear that manual methods were no longer sufficient to extract insights in a timely manner. As businesses discovered the wonders of using AI for data analytics, there was a leap in evolution. In the year 2022, the global data analytics market size stood at USD 49.03 billion (Source) and is projected to grow at a rate of 27.60% between 2023 and 2030 to reach USD 303.4 billion (Source).

The Impact of AI on Data Preprocessing

One of the initial challenges in working with raw data is preprocessing. Preprocessing typically involves processes like cleaning, transforming, and organizing the available raw data for analysis. AI algorithms, such as Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Computer Vision, have revolutionized this phase. NLP algorithms can process unstructured text data, extracting entities, sentiments, and themes, while Computer Vision algorithms make sense of images and videos. This preprocessing lays the foundation for more advanced analysis by helping you make your data more consumable and contextual. About 42% of the participating organizations in a survey said that they were exploring the use of AI in business analytics and are considering integrating them into their business processes (Source).

Enhanced Data Analysis with AI

The true magic of AI in data analytics lies in its ability to perform complex analyses at scale. Machine Learning (ML) algorithms can identify patterns, correlations, and anomalies within the data that might take a lot longer (if at all) to emerge to human analysts. For example, AI-powered clustering algorithms can segment customers based on their behaviors, enabling targeted marketing strategies that would work a lot more accurately than in a situation where the data was used raw or after manual preprocessing. Regression models can even predict future trends, aiding in demand forecasting and resource allocation for the most efficient outcome. 35% of the participants in a Gartner study said that the key data analytics area where they would like to invest is in artificial intelligence (Source).

AI-Driven Predictive Analytics

Predictive analytics is a subset of data analytics that has been entirely transformed by the coming together of AI and data analytics. The traditional predictive models relied heavily on historical data and manual feature engineering, which meant they were limited in functioning ad produced far less accurate results. AI predictive analytics leverages advanced ML techniques, including Deep Learning, to automatically extract features and make accurate predictions. Businesses can now anticipate customer behavior, optimize supply chains, and mitigate risks more effectively. This is further established by the fact that now 48% of businesses are using the above-mentioned advanced techniques to process large data sets (Source).

Unveiling Unstructured Data Insights

Most of the world's data is unstructured and is typically stored in text, audio, or image format. AI has opened up great opportunities for using unstructured data by enabling sentiment analysis, speech recognition, and image classification. For instance, AI sentiment analysis of customer reviews provides valuable insights into product perception, while AI-powered image recognition can identify defective products on manufacturing lines. By the end of the year 2023, it is estimated that more than 80% of companies will switch to a technology that does sentiment analysis (Source).

Real-time Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence

Traditional data analytics mostly worked with historical data, which would often limit its relevance as the world is evolving around us. AI has managed to transform the entire landscape with the concept of real-time analytics. By processing continuous data streams, AI algorithms present the possibility of detecting emerging trends, anomalies, and opportunities in real-time. Financial institutions, for example, make use of AI for data analysis and monitor transactions for fraudulent activities instantaneously. In fact, the global AI in the fraud management market is projected to reach $57,146.8 million by the year 2033 (Source).

Conclusion

The journey from raw data to actionable insights has been transformed by the integration of AI into data analytics. AI's ability to preprocess data, perform complex analyses, and predict future trends has revolutionized decision-making across industries. The marriage of AI and data analytics has paved the way for more accurate, timely, and relevant insights, enabling organizations to stay competitive in today's fast-paced world. As AI continues to evolve, its impact on analytics is poised to grow, reshaping how we harness data for a better future.

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Snigdha

Content Head at Appy Pie