Unifying Business, Data, and Code

Chapter 16. Toward Unified Intelligence

Chapter 15 introduced 10 essential principles for designing intelligence to equip data champions for the next phase of their journey: going beyond data management into the realm of actionable intelligence strategies. In this final chapter, we elevate the discourse by exploring the key approaches that organizations can adopt to seamlessly weave artificial intelligence (AI) and foundational principles of designing intelligence into their operational fabric.

In this chapter, we demystify three cornerstone approaches to intelligence that are redefining modern enterprise strategies, each offering a unique blend of artificial and human elements:

Functional artificial intelligence

A pragmatic approach focusing on problem solving through the targeted deployment of AI or ML. This strategy homes in on specific operational functions, driving measurable gains in efficiency.

Collective intelligence

This strategy often employs autonomous AI agents like drones or groups within organizations, and has parallels to swarm intelligence.

Collaborative intelligence

Capitalizes on human-guided choices and machine-generated data insights, culminating in a self-perpetuating cycle of improvement for both individual decision making and organizational efficiency.

The subsequent sections of this chapter will guide you through the application of a unified framework to these intelligence strategies, integrating them with the 10 principles of intelligent design ...