Although we might not realise it, automation is deeply ingrained in many aspects of our everyday lives. Each morning, I eat my toast, prepared and timed by a machine. Then, I drive to work using GPS, while listening to music on my phone. It’s hard to picture a single day without machines.
The iGaming industry hasn’t been excluded from rising levels of automation. I’ve seen the market completely altered beyond recognition by the rise of online casinos and the adoption of artificial intelligence. How, you ask? Well, let me tell you!
In the Roll of a Dice—Online Casinos
Online casinos are dependent on automation to survive. Rather than playing against a dealer in games like blackjack, users are playing a computer. This automation has paved the way for the incredible expansion of the iGaming industry, worth a predicted £349.65 billion in 2025. After all, there are simply not enough casino dealers to have one inside every computer or phone!
The Rise of Random Number Generators
At online casinos, results aren’t determined by dice like they are at the brick-and-mortar venues, but by computer algorithms like random number generators. These generators automate the process while ensuring that results are completely random and unpredictable, just like at a land-based casino.
This also means there’s less room for cheating than at traditional casinos. While many players may have tried their luck at counting cards in the real world, the virtual one makes it almost impossible. Computers are responsible for shuffling cards, meaning the ones coming up next are truly random. Of course, this automation also reduces the room for human error.
Talk Robot to Me—AI in Customer Service
Let’s look at one of the most noticeable automation changes, the adoption of artificial intelligence in customer service. You’ve probably encountered an AI bot live chat on a site by now, but did you know the first one was created way back in 1966? Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, Joseph Weizenbaum, developed a programme for a psychotherapist named Eliza on a typewriter! This early chatbot considered the user’s input and followed a list of rules to generate an appropriate response.
How Does AI Work in iGaming Customer Service?
Today, AI is a little more complicated than that, but it still works in basically the same way. Users of an iGaming site can ask the chatbot their query, and if it recognises it, the programme can accurately respond. It does this by scouring the Internet for an accurate answer, which it then relays to the user.
Incorporating AI in customer service means that players can get a much faster response than they would from just humans. I think it’s a great solution for simple questions, often answering within a matter of seconds or minutes. It means human representatives are free to answer more complicated queries.
The Future of Chatbots
While I think chatbots are an ideal tool for ensuring customers promptly get the help they need, they’re not without their faults. I’ve encountered bots not recognising my question framework a number of times, meaning I have to reword my query to get an answer. Once AI works through these teething issues, I think we’re likely to see it being used even more widely in the iGaming industry.
You Might Like This One—Improved Recommendations
AI has also been helping personalise the iGaming experience, helping to offer more accurate recommendations. It does this by utilising one of the most impressive features of AI, the ability to analyse vast amounts of data in a short amount of time. It’s estimated that it can generate data insights a staggering 1000 times faster than humans can! That’s a valuable asset for the iGaming industry, allowing providers to analyse user behaviour and tailor their experience.
How Does AI Personalise the User Experience?
Customisation extends beyond just the game recommendations I see on a provider. They also impact the advertisements you see. Have you ever been talking, or even thinking, about a product and then it appears in an advertisement while you’re browsing? Don’t worry, your phone isn’t listening to you or reading your mind, it’s analysing your preferences.
The iGaming industry has also embraced this area of automation. Once AI has analysed the behaviour of a user, accounting for their history and visited sites, it determines their preferences. For example, it would be able to tell I was a slot fiend thanks to my playing history, and it could recommend me other slot games I’m likely to enjoy.
Spotting a Cheater—AI in Reducing Fraud
Another area that’s been automated by the adoption of AI into the iGaming industry is preventing cheating and fraud. Fraud is a sizable concern in the industry; between 2019 and 2021, fraud levels shot up an eye-watering 68%, costing providers millions of pounds.
It’s little wonder, then, why they’ve been so quick to adopt AI to help reduce these numbers. Once again, AI’s ability to analyse data so efficiently comes in handy, allowing providers to identify cheaters much faster than with human analysis. The earlier the intervention, the more money the provider can save.
How Does AI Identify Cheaters?
AI looks out for patterns when identifying those who are trying to cheat casinos. It has a pattern of what the average playing behaviour looks like and identifies when users stray from it. For example, if an account is active around the clock, AI will flag it. It can also tell whether a user is making decisions faster than humanly possible.
One of the most prevalent forms of cheating is bonus abuse, where users create multiple accounts to claim a bonus more than once. AI is also being used to help prevent this by highlighting accounts that share the same personal details.
Automating the Future—Generative AI
Generative AI has more autonomy than the traditional form of AI, allowing it to make decisions like a human can. ChatGPT is probably the form of generative AI that the most people would recognise. It’s different from the original form, often known as narrow AI, because it can create or generate new content.
Most readers who have tried generative AI will know there are still a few issues to be ironed out. Whether it’s generating false case-law citations or stealing artwork, generative AI faces its fair share of criticism. However, an improved version could play a key role in the future of advertising in the iGaming industry.
How do I Think Generative AI Will be Used in the Future of iGaming?
Thanks to its greater autonomy, the future developments of generative AI could mean the entire marketing process is automated. First, it can be used to determine the preferences of the user. Then, it can be used to alter the marketing materials the user sees to reflect their preferences.
In the future, generative AI could take this automation even further. Not only could it generate new marketing materials, but it could also send them out to the relevant customers. I don’t think we’re many years off seeing AI-generated content automatically sent to our email inbox. I believe the iGaming industry will be quick to adapt to this automation, as it often does.
How is Automation Used in the iGaming Industry?
Automation plays a vital and unavoidable role in the iGaming industry. Automating the roll of a dice and shuffling of cards, using algorithms like random number generators, has made casino games more accessible and popular than ever before.
AI is another form of automation that has played a dramatic role in the expansion of the industry and improvement of user experience. Whether it’s chatbots making customer service more efficient, or traditional AI analysing preferences for better recommendations, AI has shaped the iGaming industry for the better.
The industry seems set to adopt increasing levels of automation in the future. I think we’re edging closer to seeing AI-generated content in our inboxes sent by AI bots, signalling automation at every step of marketing. Overall, the rise of automation has helped support the rise of the iGaming industry, becoming one of our most popular hobbies.
Miona Ludoski is an expert in all things casino, having been writing reviews since 2021. She’s a slot fanatic and knows exactly what goes into making a standout casino. Miona doesn’t rest on her existing knowledge, though; she’s constantly reading industry news to keep up to date with the latest trends and developments.
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