Automation in 2019: The 10 Most Popular RPA & AI Articles in 2019

Editor's note: As the automation market continues to evolve, the UiPath Platform also updates to best serve the automation needs of our customers. As such, some of the product names in this article have evolved since the article was originally published. For up-to-date information, please visit our AI Center page.

2019 was a big year for Robotic Process Automation (RPA). Automation skills and jobs continued to grow in number. Global companies realized the impact RPA could have on productivity, cost efficiency, and customer and employee satisfaction. At the end of the year, total RPA software spending likely hit earlier $1.3 billion predictions from Gartner.

More and more companies are finding their ways in the ‘automation first’ era. In the face of dramatic technology and market changes, companies using automation are embracing the need for digital transformation. Over the course of 2019, we learned as much from our customers and partners as we showed them.

Below are the top 10 RPA and artificial intelligence (AI) articles from the year, based on what you visited and read the most.

Whether you’ve been following along on our journey to make automation accessible for people and companies around the world or you’re new to the UiPath Enterprise RPA Platform, we hope that these resources help you shape your automation strategy and knowledge.

1

When implementing a new technology, it is important for everyone involved to use the same vocabulary and this comprehensive list of automation terminology will give you that foundational knowledge. Whether you’re a new RPA developer, new robotic Center of Excellence (CoE) member, or a C-suite leader looking to implement automation technology at your company, this glossary will help you get up to speed quickly. 

At UiPath, we believe automation technology should be freely accessible—and understandable—to everyone. To learn more about what’s possible through automation, and how RPA can support your business, check out these additional resources:

• RPA Essential Webinar Series

• What is RPA?

• The Smart RPA Playbook: From Real-World RPA Deployments to a Practical Guiding Framework

2

RPA and AI have a lot of promising applications across many industries, but one of the most common—and profitable—uses for this automation tech is invoice and receipt processing. This article takes a look at the ways our customers use AI and RPA to make their invoice processing more efficient and less time-consuming.

The beauty of RPA and AI integration is its ability to adapt to the needs and goals of every company in any industry. Our customers are also using AI and RPA to improve insurance claim processing, revolutionize manufacturing, and support back-office bookkeeping. Read more about these additional applications:

• How Insurance is Driving Claims Processing Efficiency with Robotic Process Automation

• UiPath Demo: Invoice Extraction and Processing

• UiPath Helps MAS Holdings Save 14,000 Days Annually

3

Automation technology is an exciting prospect for any business, but you need to know how to track its success over time to make the most of it and scale well. This article covers the 10 metrics that companies should use to assess their robots’ performance, identify where automation has the biggest impact, and understand where to improve.

Whether you’re a C-suite leader or a citizen developer, you know that you need quantitative data to measure your progress toward daily and long-term operations goals. After reading this article, if you’re looking to dive deeper into the metrics you can use to measure automation success, check out these additional resources:

• Analytics for Your RPA Deployment: A KPI Playbook

• UiPath Insights Webinar: Measure the Impact of Your Automation Strategy

4

Our customers did some amazing things with software robots in 2019. This article is a deep dive into three ways attended automation can be used to make your business more efficient, compliant, and productive.

These results are unique, but not uncommon. Every day, UiPath robots are used to make people’s jobs—and lives—easier. Using RPA, companies around the world cut thousands of hours of manual labor, boosted their bottom lines, and increased customer and employee satisfaction. Read their stories:

• Nonprofit, The New York Foundling, Saves 100,000 Hours in Manual Work Annually with UiPath

• Nielsen Embraces RPA at Scale to Drive Digital Transformation

• Growing Shared Services Capabilities via RPA-enabled Human and Virtual Service Centers

5

Time and time again, our customers have told us that one of the biggest barriers to automation success is scaling. In this article, UiPath Chief Strategy Officer Vargha Moayed provides practical, actionable information on how to break down this barrier and scale quickly and effectively.

These articles get into the nitty gritty, demonstrating how you can build effective change management policies, organize world-class CoEs, and develop an automation first mindset. Learn how to build automation that scales with your business:

• 3 Considerations for Building Agile Automation at Scale

• Scale Your Automation Program with This 7-Pillar Framework

• Automation Strategies to Take You from Scaling RPA to Transforming Your Entire Organization

1. UiPath 2019: Long Term Support Release

Our 2019 Long Term Support (LTS) release was one of the most exciting pieces of news we announced in 2019. The release empowers you to manage the entire automation lifecycle: planning, building, managing, running, engaging, and measuring the impact of your automations. This update outlines our most important investments in each one of these automation lifecycle phases (shown below).

Learn more about the exciting UiPath product updates in 2019 and how those updates can help transform your business:

• UiPath Platform Release Webinar: Powering the Entire Automation Lifecycle

• 2019 Fast-Track Release: Powering the Automation First Era

• UiPath Introduces a New Release Strategy

7

Whether you’re a new RPA developer or a business owner exploring automation, building and deploying your first robots can be a daunting task. StudioX changes how people manage and implement RPA by opening up the ability to create robots to anyone at any level of business by supporting automation development without coding skills or developer resources. This means business users can deploy robots where they’re needed faster than before.

Democratizing RPA development means employees can do their jobs better, faster, and smarter, but the benefits of automation go well beyond the individual level. An automated workforce means more spent time achieving wider organizational goals, fueled by innovation and vision. Read more about the many ways software robots can change your business—and the world:

• Your Right to Robots: Why the Future of Automation Depends on RPA Democratization

• Your Right to Robots: Wait Less, Forge the Future of Education, and Improve Your Local Economy

• UiPath and Coca-Cola İçecek: The Alchemy of an Automation Culture

8

Back in April, we revealed the UiPath AI Fabric vision in this article (and during a presentation at Google Next). UiPath AI Fabric ties together our end-to-end automation platform and AI technologies to help propel modern businesses through digital transformation. This combination brings together the best of both automation worlds: the rule-based performance of RPA and the adaptive nature of AI.

Read more about the potential of AI and RPA:

• RPA + AI: Understanding the AI Fabric Vision

• Getting Back to What You Love about Data: Solving Common Data Science Headaches with AI Fabric

• How to Use AI to Optimize Document Understanding

9

Earlier this year, UiPath was a leader in the first-ever Magic Quadrant for Robotic Process Automation Software by Gartner. This article dives into the key takeaways from the report and what it means for the larger automation industry.

Every year, automation experts like Gartner, The Economist, and Forrester bring you the kind of insights you need to succeed in the automation first era. Find out more about the global automation trends and strategies you’ll need to stay competitive in 2020:

• Are You Ready for Hyperautomation?

• Global Automation Trends: Where RPA is Accelerating and How You Can Keep Up

10

Adaptability is essential for an organization's survival. This article dives into four digital transformation case studies. Each company's digital transformation strategy (and whether it was successful) offers actionable insights you can put to use in your own transformation journey.

Read more about how to be successful in your digital transformation journey:

• 3 Automation Strategies to Take You From Scaling RPA to Transforming Your Entire Organization

• Why It Takes a Village for Organizations to Achieve Digital Transformation

• Empowering Every Employee To Be An Automation Hero

Leading global automation in 2019 and beyond

As 2019 comes to a close, we’re grateful for support from our customers, readers, and partners. Whether you’re a C-suite leader, IT professional, burgeoning developer, or just curious about the automation first era, the achievements of 2019 wouldn’t have been possible without you.

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