3Pillar Global, a provider of innovative software products and technology solutions, has released a report with a positive outlook towards the future of machine learning in the years to come. The company predicts that the size of the Machine Learning as a Service Market is estimated to grow from $613.4 million in 2016 to $3.76 billion by 2021, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 43.7% from 2016 to 2021.
Machine learning is a branch of artificial intelligence that aims to simulate intelligent abilities of humans by machines. It relies on a set of algorithms that trains a predictive model by learning from the information hidden inside an existing dataset; the trained model is then validated and tested to discover the accuracy levels, which results in a smart predictive model. The model is built in such a way that it gets smarter over a period of time.
“IoT will be the reason to see an exponential growth in Machine Learning segment. There are a multitude of use cases in real life where machine learning has worked very well, such as Financial services, the Government sector, Healthcare, Marketing & Sales, and Transportation to name a few,” said Sayantam Dey, Senior Director of Engineering, 3Pillar Global.
According to the company, workers with knowledge in machine learning are indeed one of the fastest growing staffing needs in Silicon Valley, but the Valley’s resource pool lacks the manpower to support the growth figures expected. A recent report by McKinsey suggests that Silicon Valley is looking at a shortage of 300,000 employees (data scientists) by 2018, and this number holds true for India and its contribution towards machine learning.
“The growth figures are great for this segment but on the ground, the reality is grim when we talk about the need for data scientists. In Delhi/NCR, if someone wants to do a PhD in machine learning, then there is not even a single mentor at this time to assist the enthusiast. If we don’t quickly develop home-grown expertise in machine learning, this could soon lead to brain draw,” added Manoj Bisht, Architect, 3Pillar Global.