AI and automation are two terms that are often used interchangeably, probably because they serve similar purposes: to help businesses operate smarter and more efficiently. In this blog, we give you a deeper understanding of the two terms and how they are different.

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What is automation?
What is AI?
Automation vs AI: key differences
How is AI used in automation?
How can you get started with AI-based automation?
Many companies today have already adopted automation due to its ability to effectively perform tasks at high speed and accuracy. The next step for these companies is AI.

Adding AI to automation adds another dimension to productivity and efficiency and lets these companies do so much more. It brings them towards so-called hyperautomation, which according to Gartner is “an unavoidable market state.”

But what is AI actually (in simple terms), and how can businesses use it in their automation efforts to achieve this next-level automation?

What is automation?
Automation is about setting up robots to follow orders; “if I say 'A' the robot does 'B'”. We, the humans, define the rules, and the robots perform them. That's the essence of automation.

The point of this is to free humans from highly repetitive tasks that are tedious and error-prone.

When us humans perform repetitive tasks, we tend to not only get bored, but also make mistakes. Robots don't (unless they are set up incorrectly) and can also perform these tasks faster. They also don't get sick or take holidays, which is of great convenience to employers

The idea with AI (Artificial Intelligence) is to replicate humans on a cognitive level and thereby to enable robots to think, speak and even act like human beings.

Essentially, AI enables machines to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as understanding natural language, recognizing patterns, solving problems, and learning from experience.

Today, however, AIs aren't as smart as many make them up to be. What we have today is a junior version of intelligence - also called Narrow Artificial Intelligence (NAI).

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