What the SOA Board is Reading

An Executive’s Guide to AI [Artificial Intelligence]

This article provides definitions of key terminology and illustrates the different types of machine learning. It also shows how advances in algorithms; data proliferation and computing power increases have accelerated the development of AI.

Skill shift: Automation and the future of the workforce

This study looked at how demand for skill shifts will change given AI and automation, which is anticipated to decrease the value of some skills and increasing the value of others. Most of the information about shifting skill sets is found in the first two sections of the discussion paper.

The Great A.I. Awakening: How Google used artificial intelligence to transform Google Translate, one of its more popular services — and how machine learning is poised to reinvent computing itself

This article describes how AI was used to transform Google Translate. It has good “non-technical” descriptions of how AI works, and how AI can transform what computers are able to do.

Prediction Machines: The Simple Economics of Artificial Intelligence

Written by economists at the University of Toronto who argue that AI will reduce the cost of prediction, which will make the cost and value of prediction drop but increase the value of skills that are complementary to prediction, such as judgment. One of the authors, Ajay Agrawal, was the Presidential Luncheon at the 2019 SOA Annual Meeting. Book not available publicly. Available at Amazon or through other booksellers.