Deepak Ravichandran, Vice President, AI Strategy at Mastercard (UK) presented on the topic of “Rafting through the rapids of AI” for the Beyond Management Initiative (BMI) session on the 27th of November 2020. In his current role at Mastercard, Mr. Deepak Ravichandran is focused on developing product-level growth strategies in the area of Artificial Intelligence. He has over 15 years of experience covering product management, strategic advisory and business analytics. Mr. Ravichandran is a CFA charter holder and holds an MBA from INSEAD, a Masters from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and a Bachelors from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras.
Mr. Ravichandran likened the AI journey to a rafting adventure through various metaphorical links: unexpected jumps, likelihood of mishaps, relevance of coordination, thrill & excitement associated with the experience. He began by dispelling some of the common myths on AI highlighting examples where some of the myths may be partially true depending on the underlying context.
Mr. Ravichandran shared some of the recent developments in AI with significant disruptive potential e.g. algorithmic improvements in image recognition and how that was driving real life applications of facial biometrics; increasing sophistication around deep fakes and what that meant for organisations in terms of battling fraud; growth in enabling technologies resulting in faster time to market for AI-based solutions; recent developments in explainable AI helping AI get past the black box perception. He also touched upon how research efforts were gaining traction on Artificial General Intelligence highlighting Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI. He also provided an overview of the funding and investments linked to AI technologies to further drive home the disruptive potential of AI.
Mr. Ravichandran then spoke about how AI has been at the forefront in terms of battling the pandemic and how AI will continue to play a key role as we evolve into a new reality. He concluded the session by providing some pointers on how we should all think about making the most of the careers ahead of us in an AI-driven world, outlining a few dimensions:
- Thinking beyond the box: new business models
- Embracing data and AI for competitive advantage
- Driving organisational changes
- Adopting a mind-set of experimentation
- Influencing the wider ecosystem to ensure responsible use of AI
The session was truly enriching, and the guest was happy to answer the questions raised by the students. This session has given the participants additional perspectives on AI, specifically around appreciating the market developments and preparing themselves better for an AI-driven world.
Jeneve Vinolia P, F19 BMI
“Session was crisp and enriching. Looking forward to more sessions on AI”
– Asheem, F19
“an overview of A.I, its future prospects in the world of technology, as well as its application in cyber security was very summative, however, could have gone a bit into depth, with regards, machine learning , trial runs and platforms used”
– Jeshuren, F19