While AI is often seen through a commercial lens, it can help with a stunning array of challenges:

• AI can be used in the climate and environmental protection space. It can, for example, help reduce CO2 emissions by optimizing electrical grids, by matching power consumption with power generation from renewable sources, by optimizing supply chains to prevent overproduction, and so on. Preventing environment-related crimes, such as illegal deforestation, animal poaching, etc. are other use cases for sustainability AI.
• AI can be used in healthcare contexts. This includes commercial use cases, such as drug development, but also public use cases, such as tracking disease outbreaks, evaluating what populations might be at risk of contracting or developing specific illnesses, etc. Mental health also is important: Here, AI helps patients via chatbots, therapy applications, and so on.
• AI also can be used to make governments better and more efficient. Artificial Intelligence can help detect wasteful government spending and even corruption, it can provide learning tools that make education better and more accessible, and AI can also be used to improve government efficiency and make bureaucratic processes quicker and less costly.
• AI can help reduce certain dangers to our lives. This includes early warning systems for natural disasters, such as hurricanes, earthquakes, etc. where sensors and Artificial Intelligence can detect potential dangers early on. Crime prevention can also be made easier and more successful with the help of AI, e.g. via predictive analytics that help police deploy their resources effectively. AI can also be used to determine at-risk infrastructure when it comes to preventing terror attacks.

 Profiting from AI Use for Social Good

If AI helps improve our society by reducing pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, by improving access to education, and by reducing crime, then everyone benefits. Investors can, of course, not invest in NGOs, government agencies, and so on, to benefit from increased AI use.

There are, however, tech companies that will benefit from that, which may be of interest for investors. NVIDIA’s (NASDAQ: NVDA) chips will power many of the algorithms that are used by NGOs, government agencies, and so on. Arista Networks (NASDAQ: ANET) will be providing the networking equipment for many data centers that are run by government agencies and other players involved in working for social good. Companies, like Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) or Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOG), will be among the key players that provide software tools and services to those that work on improving social good.

Investors that are interested in broader exposure to the world of tech and Artificial Intelligence should take a look at our top picks.