AI-Powered Apps: A Look at Must-Have Features and What’s Next 

From creating images to streaming their favorite music, customers use applications with AI capabilities for everything they want to do. They get what ordinary mobile applications fail to provide: a personalized experience. Is personalization the only driving force behind this transition? What other features must your mobile apps have, and what advancements can you expect in the future? Let’s find out. 

Must-Have Features of AI-Powered Apps

A good mobile app has everything to bind your customers with your business: the user interface, functional buttons, smooth navigation, easy-to-use features, etc. AI has expanded the scope, showing what else can help you connect and convert your customers. 

1. Smart and Natural Interaction

Your mobile apps should not be built to educate or provide your services. Customers should feel your service agent or customer care team is directly talking to them. Though helpline numbers and ticket services are options customers can try in case of assistance, what if they don’t have to reach them and their issues get solved? 

NLP enables apps to interact more naturally with your customers. Intelligent features like chatbots and voice assistants can offer instant support by responding like real agents. 

2. Smart Search Capabilities

Everybody wants instant results. The longer your application takes to serve their queries, the more frustrated your customers get. AI-powered search features give that speed. They do not randomly show results by capturing only text from the queries; rather, they understand them. 

This feature works well for e-commerce apps, educational platforms, and content providers, where users expect to find information quickly and effortlessly.

3. Predictive Analytics

At every stage of the customer journey, you want to predict how the customers would react or their next action. AI-powered mobile apps can do that for you with predictive analytics. How does it work?

For example, it can tell your customers' future purchases based on the products they have bought from your online retail store. This way, you can fill stocks early to ensure they get the product, and you don’t miss a chance to earn the revenue. 

If you are in automotive manufacturing, retail, eCommerce, or healthcare, this feature is a must-have in your applications. 

4. Facial Recognition 

Security is an undeniable feature of any application, be it mobile or web. Traditional app development technologies and cybersecurity practices protect everything within the digital space.

However, using artificial intelligence for mobile app development takes it to the next level. Advanced algorithms can detect facial metrics to identify whether a real user is asking for access or a fake user is trying to trespass. 

The feature is highly beneficial and a must for banking, social media, and healthcare applications. 

What’s Next for AI-Powered Apps

Will there be more advanced features in the future? Technology is expanding and advancing daily, breaking every impossible assumption we have. So yes, mobile apps will have features beyond those mentioned above. Here’s what to expect. 

1. Augmented Reality (AR) Integration

Artificial intelligence and augmented reality are leading us to a technological renaissance. They are shrinking the line between the real and virtual worlds, which could transform user experience. How?

For example, customers do not have to visit physical stores. They can see how clothes will fit on them. In healthcare, practitioners can practice in virtual operation theaters, or athletes can train with virtual athletes. 

However, we have seen a glimpse of this future. Here are a few applications that use AI and AR.

IKEA Place: Customers can tap their favorite furniture and visualize how it would look in their homes using AR. The app scans the room dimensions either through captured images or live video. AI then recommends furniture options that customers may want to try. 

Snapchat and Instagram: Both platforms use AI-powered facial recognition to detect users’ faces and overlay AR filters for better images and videos. Based on users' real-time expressions, filters can adjust to their faces. 

Google Lens: This application is changing the way users surf the internet. Users can quickly find products by using their device's camera and get related information and suggestions. 

2. Emotion Recognition

Understanding what your customers feel through text-based interactions is an achievement in mobile app development. However, AI can even analyze their emotions through tone of voice and facial expressions. 

This feature will make interactions more personalized, especially for mental health apps, social media platforms, and customer support apps. 

3. Voice-Activated Navigation and Commands

Voice technology is the future of mobile app development. More customers will demand a hands-free experience, especially those who are visually impaired or have less mobility. 

Smart home devices and in-car systems are the top applications where voice technology will make a major difference. 

Will AI-Based App Development Get Expensive?

The nature of artificial intelligence leads many to believe that AI-based app development will be expensive. We cannot deny this, but it is half-truth. AI is costly only when you blindly follow the trend. 

Without a proper understanding of technology, having experienced app developers or evaluating the needs and resources increases the cost. But if you choose the best resources, there would be only justifiable investments. This would be from the app development company and AI models you choose. 

In addition, an AI as a Service platform can minimize the budget by providing pre-built models that can directly integrate with your apps. However, you also need experts for that. 

The Time to Act is Now

Small or big, the size of your business and resources matter only a bit. What matters the most is how quickly and smartly you make decisions and whether you dare to innovate. Artificial intelligence has opened endless doors of innovation. The above features are merely a glimpse into the features that can rewrite the future of your mobile apps and customers. 

While incorporating them, consider the hurdles as well. Biases, hallucinations, and security concerns might slow you down. Partnering with the right AI experts can help you overcome this.