Top 5 stories of the week: Sharp IT skills, AIaaS leveling the playing field, the enigma of AI in healthcare and more

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As 2022 draws to a close, some might say mercifully, VentureBeat readers are clearly thinking ahead. Whether you're hiring to fill skills gaps or looking to find your next opportunity, you've flocked to Drew Robb's look at the hottest IT skills of 2023 that topped the top 5 list, garnering twice more visits than the other top four stories combined. Robb not only includes the requested skills, but adds the certifications that verify those skills.

Is there an artificial intelligence (AI) division? In other words, are only large companies able to take advantage of the knowledge and innovations offered by AI? Maybe. Once. But the emergence of AI as a service (AIaaS) is making the technology accessible to small businesses without requiring them to build their own systems from scratch.

Looking to 2023, our third most-read article this week is Sharon Goldman's look at 23 AI predictions for the year ahead, ranging from "generative AI will transform enterprise applications" to "AI will make developers more efficient". Be sure to check out the other 21.

Ashleigh Hollowell notes that 2022 has been a big year for AI in healthcare, citing specific advancements from GE Healthcare and Siemens. So why, she asks, do 50% of American adults say they have seen or experienced no improvement in their own care due to advances in medical AI?

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Ben Dickson's take on why 2022 has been an eye-opening year for AI and deep learning takes 5th place.

Here are the five most popular articles of the week of December 26.

For many of the hundreds of thousands of people who have recently been laid off by tech companies, this may well be considered, in the words of Charles Dickens, the worst of times, especially with a recession looming. Yet there are many among them, and others in the workforce, who might consider this the best-case scenario.

Why? Because they have the most in-demand skills and certifications. Despite layoffs, cutbacks, tightening purse strings and general pessimism presented in the media, these IT professionals can expect higher salaries, many offers, perpetual recruitment requests and even an occasional bidding war for their talents.

AIaaS becomes an ideal option for anyone who wants to access AI without having to build an ultra-expensive infrastructure. With such a cost-effective solution available to everyone, it's no surprise that AIaaS is starting to become a standard in most industries. Analysis by Research and Markets estimated that the global AIaaS market is expected to grow by approximately $11.6 billion by 2024.

It's that time of year again when leaders, consultants, and artificial intelligence (AI) vendors examine business trends and make their predictions. After a whirlwind 2022, it's not an easy task this time around.

You might not agree with all of them, but in honor of 2023, these are 23 AI and ML prediction experts who experts say will be perfect for the coming year.

There is no doubt that artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare has had a very successful year. In October, the FDA added 178 AI-enabled devices to its list of more than 500 AI technologies approved for medical use. Topping the list of most approved devices were two major health tech players: GE Healthcare, with 42 authorized AI devices, and Siemens, with 29.

However, despite the giant strides made on the ground by these two giants, a recent survey by medical intelligence firm Bluesight found that regardless of the actual progress made, around 50% of U...