On October 8, the World Economic Forum announced the latest list of "lighthouse factories". "Artificial intelligence" is the keyword behind this list. More than 70% of the 22 manufacturing companies selected this time have achieved the goals of "increasing energy" or "reducing carbon" through the use of artificial intelligence technology. What is particularly noteworthy is that 13 of the 22 new "lighthouse factories" are from China. It can be seen from this that Chinese enterprises are at the forefront of the world in exploring the effective use of emerging technologies through innovative development.
Emerging technologies support the development of global manufacturing
In recent years, there has been an increasingly heated discussion about whether artificial intelligence can continue to promote productivity improvements. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has said that artificial intelligence "may" have the potential to boost productivity growth, "but that's not going to happen in the short term."
With the rapid development of artificial intelligence tools represented by large language models, people are increasingly aware that artificial intelligence technology has the potential to change the world. In September, the "Governing Artificial Intelligence to Help Benefit Humanity" report released by the United Nations High-level Advisory Body on Artificial Intelligence stated that although it is difficult to estimate all the impacts of artificial intelligence on complex economies, predictions indicate that artificial intelligence can significantly increase domestic production around the world. total value and will bring about changes in almost all production sectors. The report also pointed out that the broad applicability of artificial intelligence means that artificial intelligence is likely to become a general-purpose technology. Therefore, artificial intelligence can help individuals, businesses and other organizations in developed and developing economies become more productive in various fields such as retail, manufacturing, healthcare and the public sector.
Precisely because the impact of technological development on the future of mankind is difficult to predict, the world urgently needs a group of pioneering companies to explore how to transform theory into reality and turn interesting technology into useful technology. In 2018, the World Economic Forum and McKinsey & Company jointly established the "Global Lighthouse Network" to encourage global manufacturing companies to fully explore and apply cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, 3D printing, and big data analysis, and provide pilot solutions for the development of the global manufacturing industry. Innovative development ideas.
A group of companies selected into the "Global Lighthouse Network" this year have proven through actions that artificial intelligence technology can promote productivity development, create more business value, and achieve low-carbon development goals. For example, China Taiyuan Heavy Industry Rail Transit Equipment Co., Ltd., which was selected this time, has continuously improved production efficiency and product quality by using artificial intelligence and flexible automation technology, greatly reducing product defect rates and costs while increasing output. In addition, Fii's Shenzhen Guanlan factory uses emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things to optimize material recycling, track real-time carbon footprints, promote process innovation, and achieve sustainable development. It was awarded the title of "Sustainable Lighthouse Factory" by the World Economic Forum.
"There is overwhelming discussion around artificial intelligence, but its actual impact is often unsatisfactory. Against this background, the new 'global lighthouse factory' bucks the trend and uses artificial intelligence to achieve huge benefits." The World Economic Forum commented on this group of innovative companies.
Human judgment becomes increasingly important
Although the new batch of "lighthouse factories" prove that artificial intelligence technology can improve productivity, it is not easy to make good use of this technology.
The more artificial intelligence develops, the more it needs to test human abilities and users of artificial intelligence technology need to clarify their own needs. “The rise of generative AI has also given rise to the development of intelligent agents, including virtual AI and embodied AI, which promise to operate more autonomously. As a result, humans will increasingly move into strategic roles, with their judgment and Creativity is crucial," Benjamin Schonfors, an expert at the World Economic Forum's Advanced Manufacturing and Supply Chain Center, said in an interview with this reporter.
Artificial intelligence technology plays completely different roles in the hands of different users. The World Economic Forum believes that the Haier Jiaozhou Air Conditioning Interconnected Factory, which was shortlisted for the "End-to-End Lighthouse Factory", uses big data and advanced algorithms to meet the rapidly growing global demand and solve the problem of lagging response in R&D, delivery and after-sales services. and generative artificial intelligence and other technologies, which optimize the entire value chain, greatly shorten the design cycle and order delivery time, and also reduce the failure rate in overseas markets. It is the precise grasp of artificial intelligence technology capabilities and its own needs that has contributed to the substantial increase in the factory's productivity.
While focusing on artificial intelligence technology, companies also need to make full use of "artificial intelligence +" and open up the "brain holes" empowered by technology in order to maximize the gains brought by technology. "As a general technology, artificial intelligence is indeed one of the important components of the digital transformation of many sites of the Global Lighthouse Network. However, artificial intelligence technology is not the only determinant of success. Artificial intelligence is closely related to other technologies such as the Internet of Things and robotics. The convergence of industries is driving large-scale industrial transformation," Schonfors believes. Sanmen Nuclear Power Co., Ltd., which became the "Single Factory Lighthouse" this time, received high praise from the World Economic Forum: "In order to improve operational safety, Sanmen Nuclear Power has deployed more than 40 fourth industrial revolution use cases, including artificial intelligence technology and Robotics.”
According to reports, Sanmen Nuclear Power has developed an intelligent inspection robot that can realize fixed-point and scheduled automatic inspections and remote control operations. It uses computer vision modules to collect images, conducts self-learning through AI image recognition large models, and monitors the operating status of system equipment and instruments. It has functions such as data identification and recording, and judgment of the effectiveness of ion exchange columns, and completes the automatic sorting, uploading, and trend diagnosis of inspection data, which greatly improves the efficiency of operational inspections.
"The practice of the new 'Lighthouse Factory' shows that artificial intelligence technology and other Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies can not only create business value, but also improve environmental sustainability and employee engagement," said En, global leader of enterprise technology at McKinsey & Company. Nod de Boer said.