Cognitive Computing In The Next Decade Of AI
- by 7wData
- February 1, 2020

The year 2020 is upon us, and I am hearing across the news that this will be the next big decade in major technology advancement for Artificial Intelligence (AI). For example, HealthData Management reports that 93% of respondents are expecting an augmented workforce, with people, robots and AI working closely together. AI is expected to touch all domains of not only healthcare, but financial services, supply chain management, and even law. I am particularly excited about the next advancement of AI known as cognitive computing.
Perhaps Dharmendra Modha, IBM fellow, framed it best when he said, “Cognitive computing goes well beyond Artificial Intelligence and human-computer interaction as we know it – it explores the concepts of perception, memory, attention, language, intelligence, and consciousness. Typically, in AI, one creates an algorithm to solve a particular problem. Cognitive computing seeks a universal algorithm for the brain. This algorithm would be able to solve a vast array of problems.”
The term is not new; it was first discussed in the 19th century in George Boole's The Laws of Thought. Jerome Pesenti explained it well in his 2014 TED Talk when he described a cognitive AI capability where the system uses natural language processing (NLP) to understand human speech and combines it with image recognition for reading lips to enable greater accuracy. This is an example of combining multiple AI technologies to enable machines to become more like humans -- this is what cognitive computing means to me.
As we look forward to the next decade, how will AI and cognitive computing enable advancements in the area of augmented expertise of humans and machines (including robots) working better together? As a person who has been writing and building software systems for over 25 years, my favorite advancement is that humans no longer need to look at “dashboards” to interact with software. We freely talk to software now, as seen with Alexa and Siri. This is becoming so commonplace that most children know how to interact with AI software with speech today.


