As you’re (probably) well aware by now, artificial intelligence has had an incredible impact on businesses, allowing them to dive deeper into their data and make better decisions. But that’s not it–artificial intelligence’s impact on the world has just begun to take off and for the startup sector, there’s lots to look forward to for both AI-focused startups and general startups alike.
The power of artificial intelligence is ready to help startups get off the ground and we’ve created this article to help startup employees get a better idea of what AI skills are most in demand in startups right now.
Before we get right into the good stuff, however, it’s important to review exactly what sets startups apart from other kinds of companies to understand fully how AI can be applied specifically to the startup community.
What Sets Startups Apart?
You might think startups are no different than your average company, but when you look a bit closer, you’ll find that the following areas boast important differences:
Place in the market: when looking at the impact that artificial intelligence can have on startups, it’s crucial to recognize that startups lack the established place in the market that big companies have; startups are still looking for their exact place in the market and have to test out different processes to find out what works best for them.
Number of employees: while there’s no exact number of employees that defines a startup, their uncertain place in the market means that they tend to have less than 50 employees who wear multiple hats to help get the job done. Established companies, on the other hand, have many more workers.
Business speed: like we mentioned, startups are constantly looking to find their proper place in the market and this means they’ll have to adapt to what the market is doing, quickly making changes or adjustments to stay afloat while in established companies, due to strict guidelines and processes, changes take a lot longer to come around.
Resources: as you can imagine, startups’ volatile place in the market means that they’re low on all sorts of resources, such as budget and perks for employees. Established companies usually have detailed and extensive perks for their workers.
Culture: being part of an established company means you’re joining a well-oiled machine that’s probably been at work for quite a long period of time. At a startup, however, instead of this, you’ll find a malleable culture that’s ready to be shaped by the workers and keep up with modern times.
Employee responsibility: we’re sure you get the idea by now: in established companies, you’ll be stepping into a role that was most likely held by someone else in the past, giving you a clear picture of what to expect. At startups, you’re taking on something completely new and will have to take on whatever needs to be done around the office.
Lifestyle: while big, established companies have the reputation of burning employees out and having strict PTO policies, the relaxed stance that some startups may have around working location and hours doesn’t mean that those employees will work less. In fact, some startup employees are more prone to burnout because they experience such a roller coaster of emotions when it comes to working in such a constantly changing environment with lots of demand.
As you can see, the differences between startups and established companies are quite clear when you look into the details and the unique circumstances that set startups apart are exactly what make it the perfect place for artificial intelligence to take off.
AI Skills for Startups
Possibly the most important aspect to consider as we dive into AI in startups is that it’s an all hands on deck situation where employees are expected to quickly drop what they’re doing to meet urgent business needs or even take on responsibilities beyond what they were fired for and this is exactly how artificial intelligence has the potential to utterly transform the startup universe.
Automation
In a startup, every second matters and you’ll definitely want to be on the front line of the innovation that’s occurring; however, if you’re having to spend time on tedious payroll or data entry tasks, you’re not only missing out on the fun, but wasting a lot of your creative energy. With the help of AI tools, it’s possible to automate these repetitive tasks to free up your time to focus on what you’re really trying to accomplish.
Data analysis
As a startup, you’ll need to fully understand what’s happening in the market and where you stand at that moment in time, in addition to figuring out what your potential users are looking for and what your competition is doing. Artificial intelligence tools can help sort through massive amounts of data quickly to identify patterns and trends that can lead to better business decisions.
In addition, AI data tools can analyze tons of information; from social media performance to web analytics to industry reports, valuable time can be saved and additional insight gained from using artificial intelligence tools.
Chatbots
As we mentioned above, free time or extra employees are few and far between in startups and there’s a clear reason why: startups are taking on the work of an established company with a much smaller team and limited range of resources. Therefore, the introduction of smart assistants such as chatbots can take care of answering customer emails or queries, freeing up employee time for much more pressing matters.
Flexibility
While this isn’t exactly a skill related directly to artificial intelligence, startup employees have one thing going for them when it comes to incorporating AI into their day-to day: they’re already used to quickly switching gears and working with the latest technology and as AI continues to evolve rapidly, this willingness to learn new tools and adopt whatever’s new will help startup employees truly harness the power of AI.
Problem solving
Many of the artificial intelligence tools that startups are using today are quite new and not fully developed or understood just yet; this means that employees won’t just have to understand exactly what’s going on with the tool, but also figure out how to make it work for their specific needs. And as new updates get released and the power of these tools becomes even more expansive, even more problem solving skills will be needed.
As a startup employee, the potential of what you can do with artificial intelligence tools is practically limitless and if you want to continue being a standout candidate in an increasingly demanding job market, it’s time to hone your AI skills so that you’re ready to present yourself as a unique and incredible candidate.
At Ironhack, we’ve recognized this need for AI skills brought to the hands of employees in all sectors, not just tech, and that’s exactly why we’ve launched our new AI School, full of courses designed to help you learn exactly what you need to know about AI to bring your career to an entirely new level.
Ready to get started? You know what to do.
