How Human-Centered AI Combines AI and Human Intelligence

One Hollywood sub-genre continues to entertain theater-goers. From “RoboCop” to the “Terminator” franchise, the classic “robot uprising” movie features malicious machines that take over the planet. It’s usually up to Arnold Schwarzenegger or Will Smith to save the world from destruction.

All these movies tell a similar narrative: Humans program robots with artificial intelligence, but those robots seize power because they are inherently evil. Robots don’t have compassion, empathy, or any other human quality. So they do bad things.

Human-centered artificial intelligence, or HCAI, could prevent these Hollywood plotlines from becoming a reality. This relatively new technology leverages science to create machine intelligence that understands human language, behavior, and emotion. These robots think, act, and can even talk just like people do, presenting limitless possibilities for the future of civilization.

But how does HCAI work? And what benefits can it provide? Learn more about human-centered AI and how healthcare, medical, pharma, and beauty companies can benefit from it.

What Is Human-Centered AI?

HCAI combines AI and human intelligence to develop robots capable of reasoning, perception, learning, trust, emotion, and decision-making. Scientists hope these machines can support humans rather than replace them, which often happens in sci-fi movies.

In conventional AI, cognitive biases often arise because of incomplete data or prejudices from human developers. HCAI might solve this problem because humans and computer algorithms work together, providing greater transparency around the data fed into AI models. It’s a more ethical, responsible approach to AI.

How Does HCAI Work?

With this type of AI, robots are never fully autonomous. That’s because humans play a more significant role in the design and build process than they do with regular AI. Developers still use AI models when creating robots, but they check for biases and use algorithms that truly understand the human experience.

“Human-centered AI is created with people’s wellbeing in mind, focusing on technologies that will integrate seamlessly into our lives to better our overall experience,” says AI data company Appen. “It’s a means for bridging the gap between human and machine for the benefit of both.”

AI rationalization is one way to make robots more “human.” It involves training intelligent agents to perform tasks like humans, expecting that robots become more sympathetic, analytical machines. Creating human-like robots is a difficult task for developers, but it could change the technological landscape for the better.

Benefits of HCAI

HCAI can remove the biases that exist in conventional AI. This new approach promotes ethics, transparency, and accountability because humans are front and center when implementing AI algorithms.

As a result, this technology helps users make more informed decisions based on human compassion and understanding. For example, human resources departments can eliminate biases when AI models review resumes and select job candidates for interviews.

HCAI can also help organizations develop new products and technologies that benefit humans. It does this by analyzing customer needs and solving real-world problems. Conventional AI technologies with little human input can’t achieve this objective.

What Can You Use HCAI For?

There are various potential use cases for HCAI:

• Government departments can use HCAI to understand citizens and implement policies.
• Healthcare service providers can better engage with patients and improve care.
• HCAI can help marketers understand customer behaviors and emotions — something data can’t do.

Organizations can use this technology to execute a more empathetic approach to customer service in a business context. Chatbots already exist, but this type of AI can’t sympathize with or understand customers’ emotions. HCAI connects and engages with consumers on a deeper level, resulting in more effective customer service outcomes.

“Creating human-centered AI interactions that optimize relationships between AI and humans will present a larger opportunity to advance empathy-driven customer engagement,” says Informa. “This greater level of personalization derives from capturing and listening to customer feedback.”

HCAI Case Study

CaixaBank adopted a human-centered approach to AI as part of its more comprehensive digital transformation strategy. The company wanted to manage its contact center, consolidate its customer service channels, connect its existing technologies, and improve the customer experience.

CaixaBank used a combination of traditional AI and HCAI technologies to achieve these goals. Chatbots assisted customers by providing answers to queries. Then human-centered models escalated specific issues to live agents, which reduced the time it took to resolve these problems. The company also automated workflows to improve back-office processes and reduce workloads for agents.

Institutions like Stanford University are researching even more potential benefits of HCAI, focusing on the positive effects it can bring to communities, families, and the planet.

Challenges of HCAI

The challenges of HCAI are similar to those of conventional AI. This human-centered approach requires lots of big data to understand human behaviors, desires, and emotions. But where will this data come from? Data governance frameworks like GDPR make it increasingly difficult for developers to use personally identifiable data to create human-led AI models.

Another challenge of HCAI is the growing skepticism against robots. In a 2019 survey, respondents were warier of this technology than they were five years prior.

Developers can overcome these challenges by being honest about the technologies they are creating.

Final Word

HCAI keeps human behaviors and emotions at the core of artificial intelligence. By combining AI and human intelligence, developers can create smarter, more sympathetic machines that support humans in various scenarios. Although this technology is still in its infancy, HCAI is likely to change the way organizations understand and interact with people.

For more artificial intelligence insights, check out intech.media.