Suffocating in Information? Intelligent Material is your Lifeline
In the rapidly evolving digital landscape, the projected global data creation is set to reach an astounding 394 zettabytes by 2028 - that's a trillion gigabytes. This data deluge presents a challenge, but with the advent of Smart Content, it could also become an opportunity.
Smart Content is revolutionising business process automation (BPA) and intelligent data management, powered by AI, cloud computing, and hyperautomation technologies. No longer just automating discrete tasks, smart content systems are now orchestrating entire business ecosystems through intelligent document processing (IDP) and AI-powered content management. This enables real-time decision-making, process optimisation, and adaptive workflows.
Key features of today's Smart Content in BPA include advanced AI and large language models (LLMs) for intelligent decision-making, natural language understanding within content automation workflows, improving accuracy and relevance. AI techniques like Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) extract, classify, and route content automatically, supporting compliance and reducing manual handling. Hyperautomation and autonomous AI agents manage complex processes and content-driven workflows seamlessly. Cloud-native platforms offer scalability, flexibility, and integration, ensuring global reach and rapid deployment. Process Mining and Digital Twins tools allow businesses to map, simulate, and optimise content-driven processes before full automation deployment, increasing ROI and reducing risk.
In intelligent data management, smart content applications leverage AI to not only store and retrieve data but to analyse and optimise content flow and usage, improving regulatory compliance, risk reduction, and enhancing customer experience.
Looking ahead, the future potential of Smart Content in BPA and intelligent data management is substantial. The smart process applications market is expected to grow at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 16.4%, reaching $227.88 billion by 2032, fuelled by digital transformation demand and AI innovation. Platforms like Copy.ai and Jasper are evolving from simple content tools into enterprise-grade systems automating end-to-end marketing, sales, and communication workflows with integrated brand voice and content orchestration.
Advances in AI allow automatic generation and management of diverse content types, including video (Synthesia) and design (Canva's Magic Studio), enhancing speed and engagement while reducing production costs. Ongoing innovations in AI-driven process mining, simulation, and decision intelligence will deepen content automation’s ability to adapt dynamically to changing business needs.
Smart Content could prevent documents from becoming black holes that drain productivity. Instead, it could evolve into a dynamic corporate knowledge base and intelligent business process stack, more proactive than today's static PDFs and forgotten Teams files. Business documents are the foundation of every business process and sit at the intersection of AI automation, collaboration, and the challenge of managing vast amounts of data.
This results in the accumulation of "dark data" - valuable information that remains unused and forgotten. AI is not intended to run the show in data management; humans should remain at the top of decision-making. Making smarter business decisions while being exponentially more productive requires accurate extraction and strategic use of information, but not everything can be offloaded to AI.
Much of this unstructured business data is locked away in PDFs, a format that resists extraction and traps the data inside. A new generation of document management platforms with intelligence and automation built in, end-to-end, is emerging. The goal is to have a system that can instantly capture and extract all relevant information from documents, preventing data from getting trapped in silos or inflexible formats. Smart systems should access, inform, and trigger the right processes in the right systems, ensuring nothing gets lost in translation.
Scientists have even discovered a method to store hundreds of terabytes of data on a tiny crystal, potentially leading to ultra-high-density storage systems. With Smart Content, each digital file could fuel a more intelligent, efficient, and high-performing organisation. Approximately 80 to 90% of the world's business data is stored as unstructured data in documents. Embracing Smart Content could unlock this vast, untapped potential, turning the rise of the zettabytes into a boon rather than a burden.
- The intelligent data management enabled by Smart Content, which is revolutionizing business process automation, relies heavily on cloud computing, AI, and other technology solutions.
- The integration of AI technology like Intelligent Document Processing (IDP) in Smart Content systems helps in automatic extraction, classification, and routing of content, making data management more efficient and compliant.
