Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing the way we interact with technology, data, and each other. As businesses strive to stay ahead in the era of AI, they're leveraging intelligent applications across industries to unlock new opportunities. But how can you harness the power of AI to modernize and build innovative digital products? In this article, we'll explore 5 types of AI-powered apps that can be created with Azure's generative AI technology, cloud-scale data, and modern application platforms.

What Are Intelligent Apps?

Intelligent, or AI-powered, apps utilize AI models to enhance or automate specific aspects of their functionality. These apps can tap into various capabilities like natural language processing, computer vision, speech recognition, machine learning, and generative AI to provide more intelligent and responsive experiences.

By infusing AI into your mobile apps, you can achieve tangible and meaningful business outcomes. For instance, a Forrester study found that organizations using Azure managed app, data, and AI services can ship applications up to 1.5 months faster. Additionally, organizations see an increase of up to 25% in developer productivity, allowing development teams to focus less on mundane work and more on innovation.

5 Types of AI-Powered Apps

Here are 5 types of apps that customers are building on Azure to take advantage of these business benefits:

Connected Products

Connected smart products interact with other devices and systems through the internet. These products utilize sensors, processors, services, and communication hardware to collect data, analyze it, and take actions autonomously. AI-enhanced connected products use data gathered from devices to inform intelligent models that can adapt to user preferences and provide personalized experiences.

Examples of connected products include:

  • Smart home devices like thermostats, lighting systems, and security cameras
  • Wearable health trackers like smartwatches, fitness trackers, and medical devices
  • Connected cars with GPS systems, real-time traffic updates, and voice control
  • Industrial IoT applications for remote monitoring and asset tracking

Mercedes-Benz built their connected car platform on Azure using cloud-native services and generative AI. They modernized their platform using Azure Cosmos DB and Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS), allowing them to quickly update and release new features while preserving the quality and security of vehicle data.

Transaction Processing at Scale

Processing billions of transactions daily is the new normal across industries, from e-commerce to healthcare. AI-based transaction processing at scale (TPaS) can analyze transactions against business rules, detect anomalies, and identify potential fraud. GenAI can be used to add natural language UX interactions and data summarization for users.

Scenarios where AI-powered TPaS is used include:

  • E-commerce/retail: customer orders, payments, and buy online, pick up in store (BOPIS)
  • Banking and finance: deposits, withdrawals, transfers, and credit card transactions
  • Travel and hospitality: reservations, ticketing, and payment processing
  • Healthcare: appointment scheduling, billing, and insurance claims

In the travel industry, American Airlines modernized its Customer Hub app on Azure, allowing it to handle massive volumes of transactions including more than 16 million real-time messages and 17.4 million service calls per day.

AI Copilots

AI copilots are intelligent systems that assist humans in decision-making processes. These systems can analyze vast amounts of data, identify patterns, and provide recommendations. Scenarios where AI copilots are used include:

  • Healthcare: AI-powered diagnosis tools that analyze medical images and patient data
  • Finance: AI-powered investment advisors that analyze market trends and provide personalized investment advice
  • Travel: AI-powered travel assistants that recommend destinations based on user preferences

Support Bots and Information Discovery

Support bots and information discovery apps utilize AI to provide personalized assistance and answer complex questions. These apps can be used in various industries, including:

  • Healthcare: AI-powered chatbots that assist patients with medical queries
  • Finance: AI-powered virtual assistants that help customers with financial queries
  • Travel: AI-powered travel agents that recommend destinations based on user preferences

Personalization and Recommendations

Personalization and recommendation apps use AI to provide users with tailored experiences. These apps can be used in various industries, including:

  • E-commerce/retail: AI-powered product recommendations based on user behavior
  • Finance: AI-powered investment advice based on user risk tolerance and financial goals
  • Travel: AI-powered travel recommendations based on user preferences and travel history

By leveraging the power of AI, businesses can unlock new opportunities and create innovative digital products that transform the way we interact with technology, data, and each other.

Additional Resources

  • Industrial IoT prediction patterns
  • Azure Cosmos DB in IoT workloads
  • Cargo logistics/vehicle telemetry scenario and architecture