Analytics leader SAS will invest US $1 billion in artificial intelligence (AI) over the next three years through software innovation, education, expert services, and more.
According to a press release, SAS investment in AI will be used in three main areas: Research and Development (R&D) innovation where SAS continues to build on the success of its global AI efforts; education initiatives addressing customer needs to better understand and benefit from AI; and expert services to optimise customer return on AI projects.
“At SAS, we remain dedicated to our customers and their success, and this investment is another example of that commitment,” said SAS Chief Executive Officer Jim Goodnight, in the statement. “With our innovative capabilities in AI, SAS helps businesses deter damaging fraud, fight deadly disease, better manage risk, provide exemplary service to customers and citizens, and much more.”
So where will SAS investment in AI be used?
R&D Innovation:
SAS will be investing in R&D innovation in all core areas of AI, with a special focus on making it easy for users with different skill levels to benefit – from business experts to data engineers to data scientists. SAS is embedding AI capabilities into the SAS Platform and solutions for data management, customer intelligence, fraud & security intelligence and risk management, as well as applications for industries including financial services, government, health care, manufacturing and retail.
SAS continues to partner with innovative companies and leading technology providers like Accenture, Cisco, Deloitte, Intel and NVIDIA. This work brings the latest advances and practices in AI and machine learning to customers, and ensures SAS AI technologies perform optimally in customers’ hardware and cloud environments.
Customer Education and Development Initiatives:
Customer education and development initiatives such as the new SAS AI Accelerator Program will focus on helping organisations and professionals get AI-ready at any level. SAS will offer:
- Tailored curricula to help organisations improve their AI skills. This will include e-learning like the SAS Academy for Data Science, and in-person training in AI technologies, best practices and more.
- Certification programs that help analytics professionals and data scientists earn the valuable credential of SAS Certified Professional in AI and Machine Learning. This will make them even more marketable to companies seeking AI talent.
- The SAS Analytics Center of Excellence, a group of PhDs and advanced experts in AI, machine learning, NLP, computer vision, optimisation, simulation and related data science skills. These SAS experts are dedicated to supporting customer AI implementations – from well-established applications to first-of-a-kind innovation.
AI and Analytics in Action:
As the latest addition to the SAS smart campus project, SAS’ newest headquarters building, a 420,000 sq. ft. tower which hosts the new Global Education Center, uses the latest innovations in AI and machine learning to connect performance with business results. The new building features thousands of IoT connected sensors – embedded in chillers, boilers and air handlers – that monitor water and energy use. Through neural networks using SAS Event Stream Processing, the SAS facilities team will track sensors and systems performance in real time to enhance predictive maintenance (identifying equipment problems before they become major) and optimize energy and water usage. Underscoring SAS’ commitment to sustainability, nearly half of the new building’s power is supplied by the adjacent SAS Solar Farm.