Skip to content
MarketScale
‹ Back to IndustriesIndustrial IoT

Predicting the Unpredictable With Data

The digital transformation accelerated in 2020, prompting the rapid adoption of new technologies and practices, especially AI and ML. TC Riley advises businesses on successfully implementing AI/ML projects by setting clear goals and focusing on clean data inputs.

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Industrial IoT teams put it to work with AI Visibility (GEO).

By Industrial Iot · AiArtificial IntelligenceDataDiving Into Data
Share
Predicting the Unpredictable With Data

Key takeaways

01

AI and Machine Learning have gained traction as key technologies for future advancement.

02

Set well-defined, achievable goals to ensure successful AI and ML project outcomes.

03

Properly clean and refine data inputs to maximize the effectiveness of Machine Learning.

Get featured

Want to get featured in MarketScale Industrial IoT?

Create a free MarketScale workspace and get your company's expertise featured across our Industrial IoT coverage. No credit card, no demo required.

Start free

Our society has been moving in a more digital direction for years, but 2020 kicked us into high gear when it came time to finding new digital solutions for work, education, socializing, and entertainment. With the forced digital transformation of many companies, we’re seeing a strong emergence of certain technologies and practices. Overall the ‘value of data’ has increased to many companies. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) in particular have come into focus for many as what is “next up” for advancement.

TC Riley, host of Diving Into Data, shared his top tips and tricks that illustrate that AI and ML span many levels and that you don’t need experts to implement these techniques.

Set a Defined & Simple Goal

Riley explained that your project should have a very simple, focused goal. He says that one of the easiest ways to derail an AI or ML project is by trying to tackle too much on your first attempt. Make each goal achievable and clear.

Work Toward an Impactful Result

That being said, you also need to ensure that simplicity doesn’t result in a watered-down expected result. Riley urged listeners to work for something that will have a measurable impact, and to ensure you’re looking at a core competency of your business. Your efforts should always produce actionable results.

Clean Your Data

Riley explained that ML is an incredible tool, but the opportunities it provides for data analysis are only as good as the data inputs. Take enough time to properly clean and refine your data before launch.

Avoid “Scope Creep”

He warned that analysis projects do tend to creep outside their initial scope. Make sure you stick to the predefined goal and project scope. There will be more time for future projects down the road.

According to Riley, “If you’re a business leader control what you can control. The biggest requirement to me of a business leader right now and what they can do, is understanding data and being able to make informed decisions with any and all external factors that may be into play. You need leaders who are able to appreciate the data, but also appreciate what the data can’t show or the unpredictable elements of that data,” Riley said.

Catch up on all episodes of Diving Into Data!

Your experts belong here

Every story in MarketScale Industrial IoT starts with a company putting its controls engineers, plant-floor specialists, and integration partners on the record. Buyers are already reading this topic. The only question is whose experts they find.

Plant and controls buyers research deep before contact, and your engineers get to shape that research.

Get your team featuredSee how it works15 minutes, straight to a calendar.

About the author

II
Industrial Iot
B2B Weekly

The week in Industrial IoT, and sixteen other industries, every Monday.

Ten stories, one-line takes, five minutes. Free.

Industrial IoT: are you visible to AI?

Before they reach out, Industrial IoT buyers ask AI engines which vendors to trust. Explore how your experts, customers, and partners can become useful content for buyers and AI search.

Free plan

You just read one Industrial IoT expert. Your company is full of them.

This article was produced through MarketScale. The same platform turns your controls engineers, plant-floor specialists, and integration partners into the articles, video, and social content Industrial IoT buyers are searching for. Create a free workspace and see it with your own people. No credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What you get, free

Your own MarketScale workspace, up to 10 people
One professional video edit a month for qualifying companies
Media requests to your crowd, remote recording, AI writing tools
$0, no credit card, nothing that expires

More Industrial IoT Insights

Toyota estimates up to 1 trillion yen a year for factory automation from 2028

Toyota estimates up to 1 trillion yen a year for factory automation from 2028

Toyota told investors factory automation could cost about 1 trillion yen ($6.4 billion) a year from 2028 across Toyota, group companies and major suppliers, CNBC reported. Toyota also said it could take roughly 400,000 robots. The company has not committed to the spending or said how long it would run, CNBC reported.

  • 011 trillion yen ($6.4 billion) per year estimated spending on factory automation starting 2028
  • 02About 400,000 robots needed across Toyota, group companies and major suppliers including replacements and new installations
  • 03Automation scope covers industrial robots, automated material handling, and future human-robot collaboration on factory floors

Sep 23, 2026

Flexxbotics claims 125% capacity gains by turning factory data into governed actions

Flexxbotics claims 125% capacity gains by turning factory data into governed actions

Flexxbotics says its platform turns production signals into authorized actions. It cited a 125% capacity increase at PMI and an 89% downtime reduction at EIS. For multi-site operators, the question is which actions can run autonomously and which require human approval.

  • 01The most concrete benchmark in Flexxbotics’ IMTS release is outcome-based: PMI’s reported 125% capacity increase and EIS’s 89% downtime reduction set a high bar for any closed-loop automation business case (Design News).
  • 02Flexxbotics is selling governance as much as analytics: teams predefine where the platform may act, which responses are authorized, and when human-in-the-loop approval is required (WhatTheyThink).
  • 03Protocol-level connectivity is central to deployment scope, with “Transformers” described as supporting bi-directional communication across more than 1,000 makes and models, a practical proxy for how much brownfield equipment can be brought into a closed loop without rip-and-replace (WhatTheyThink).

Sep 23, 2026

In-machine CNC fire suppression: Stat-X vs Firetrace

In-machine CNC fire suppression: Stat-X vs Firetrace

Modern Machine Shop describes Fireaway’s Stat-X as an electrically actuated, potassium-based aerosol generator mounted inside a CNC enclosure and triggered by a separate electronic sensor. A 2025 trade article describes the same two detection approaches—electronic point detection and heat-sensitive tubing—while widening the spec to include mist extraction, fire dampers and pressure relief. For shops running oil coolant, Schwarzenbach writes that many corporate insurance policies mandate installed and regularly maintained suppression.

  • 01A system designed to extinguish a fire inside the machine costs a small percentage of a CNC’s price, per Modern Machine Shop, so the comparison is against major fire damage or rebuilding—not the option’s sticker price.
  • 02Detection inside a machine tool comes down to two methods, heat-rupturing pressurized tubing or electronic heat and flame sensors, and Modern Machine Shop described a version of each in its 2009 and 2011 articles; what 2025 guidance adds is mist extraction, fire dampers and pressure-relief flaps in the same specification.
  • 03For shops running CNC machines on oil coolant, many corporate insurers require suppression to be installed and maintained, which turns a purchasing option into a policy condition and a maintenance audit item.

Sep 18, 2026

Explore More Industrial IoT Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Industrial IoT.

Browse Industrial IoT Hub

About the Experts

II
Industrial Iot
TR
TC Riley

Host

TC Riley is the host of the Diving Into Data podcast where he shares insights on AI and ML implementation.

For B2B teams

Your experts could be publishing here

Stories like this one run on content MarketScale captures from real practitioners. See how your team's expertise becomes coverage in Industrial IoT and beyond.

Book a 15-minute demo

Or call us. No forms required. We pick up. 214-945-2512