One of the defining features of our modern world today is the constant development of cost-saving technologies. Many products that are very cheap and accessible today required several months of savings to buy in the past. For example, clothing in the 17th and 18th centuries was a very expensive commodity: many people had only one pair of shoes per family.
Today, one can buy clothing cheaply almost everywhere because we have managed to increase and cheapen the production of commodities in an unprecedented manner. Many products that seem inaccessible or expensive today may become very cheap in the future thanks to labour-saving technologies and, of course, automation. Cars, laptops, and food delivery: all these products and services are expensive today, but may become very cheap in the future thanks to automation.
Automation is becoming increasingly accessible in the modern world. In the past, access to AI tools or robotics was reserved only for the largest players on the market; many small and medium businesses can access this technology today.
Make.com app development services, which leverage one of the most accessible software automation tools on the market, are growing in popularity. Many other platforms, such as Zapier, FlutterFlow, and Bubble, are also increasing their market share at a rapid pace.
In this article, we want to review some of the automation successes that are defining the market in the 2020s. Even though most of them occurred in big companies, the cheapening of automation technology will eventually enable smaller companies to achieve similar successes, too.
Case Studies of Successful Automation
Case 1. General Motors
Modern car manufacturers are among the most eager investors in new automation technologies. One of the most well-known companies that is investing in automation en masse is General Motors.
The company is using a wide range of solutions to achieve its goals. It uses traditional static industrial robots that can assemble some complex car parts, as well as cobots (collaborative robots) and autonomous moving robots to simplify the work of assembly line operatives (for example, by delivering certain parts to them).
General Motors is also among the major investors in modern AI technologies, which it plans to use for the creation of the new generation of robots. The company uses AI to optimise its manufacturing processes and deliver better products for customers.
After the 2008 Financial Crisis, General Motors was on the verge of bankruptcy, but this combination of automation technologies allowed it to stage a comeback and recover many lost positions on the market.
Case 2. Amazon
Amazon is also among the companies that are known for massive advances in productivity driven by automation. This company strives to deliver one of the cheapest customer-oriented retail services in the world. It aims to achieve this goal by automating as many processes in its warehouses as possible.
Amazon has acquired multiple robotics companies, such as Kiva Systems, aiming to produce its warehouse robots internally. Today, its warehouses are well-known for using a wide variety of robots used to load wares or help human workers sort them into various packages.
The company is also among the most significant investors in the current artificial intelligence push. It optimises production lines via this technology and, for instance, uses it to optimise product choice and delivery routes for customers. All these approaches allow the company to dramatically reduce order processing times and enable same-day delivery services.
Case 3. Sephora
Major automation-based innovations are not only used by large retail networks that deliver millions of products daily. Companies in particular market niches are investing in automation, too. Sephora, a major cosmetics brand, is using AI and modern visualisation technologies to automate product consulting in the cosmetics space.
A common problem for many customers is that they often have to rely on pre-made pictures and advice from store specialists to understand whether certain makeup suits their needs. Sephora Virtual Artist solves this problem by allowing customers to apply various products to their photographs via an AI algorithm.
In this way, the customers can now choose products themselves, without having to consult specialists or review dozens of videos online. This technology is perfect for reducing the reliance on consultants and shop assistants.
Store workers also benefit from this technology because they can now quickly demonstrate what different types of makeup look like, saving significant amounts of time and improving sales conversion rates in the process.
Case 4. JP Morgan
JPMorganChase is one of the largest banking institutions in the world. Before 2017, its employees had to review thousands, if not millions, of documents manually. This process was very time-consuming and high-pressure for most employees.
Even 10000 documents used to require multiple weeks of analysis by the internal teams of the company. To resolve this problem, JP Morgan Chase leveraged Natural Language Processing and machine learning technologies to create COiN or Contract Intelligence. This technology uses OCR (Optical Character Recognition) to digitise documents and then scans the resulting digital files via machine learning tools.
In this way, the company can quickly assess the state of various documents, sort them, and process them without human involvement. Human specialists can now focus on the most complex cases (for example, the ones that involve complex regulations or are difficult to properly digitise). This approach saves the company hundreds of thousands of hours per year.
Case 5. Domino’s Pizza
The food industry is also actively using digital automation tools. Domino’s Pizza is known for being one of the main leaders in this market. Today, it actively uses AI chatbots both for text-based and voice communication.
The company takes a significant part of its orders via these tools. For example, many of its facilities are equipped with voice-based AI that not only can react to customer requests but also adjusts to various regions, offering different accents and even communication styles, depending on the particular regions.
Apart from automating order-taking services, Domino’s is also using predictive analytics AI tools to assess pizza quality and optimise delivery routes. Thanks to these technologies, the company is now among the most powerful food-oriented brands on the American market.
Conclusion
As you can see, many companies managed to significantly improve the efficiency of their businesses by leveraging modern digital automation technologies. In the cases of companies like JP Morgan Chase, General Motors, and Domino’s Pizza, the scale of time savings appears to be genuinely impressive: some tasks now require 10 times less time investment; others have become obsolete altogether.
The spread of no-code and AI coding technologies in the modern markets enables even small businesses to replicate those successes at a relatively small cost. Many companies like Keenethics are now offering a combination of no-code and traditional development that is perfect for achieving major automation breakthroughs.
