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Quit Pushing the AI Envelope and Grab the Easy Value
Why are “data driven” companies chasing an uncertain future?
In the past month or so I have been fighting a vague sense of unease as I watch the “hype cycle” get fully revved up for ChatGPT, and all of it’s related Large Language Model (LLM) competitors. As I read more, and watch people work themselves into a fever pitch about AI in general, I am reminded of all of the hype that followed the introduction of the Internet. It’s powered by a kernel of truth, but the ultimate payoff is further down the road, and is much more difficult, than people want to believe.
Why are people excited about LLMs?
I can’t go a day without reading about how someone has ChatGPT writing marketing pitches, emails, short stories, and advertising copy. It’s a bit overwhelming, with everyone expressing some variation of, “it will completely change our industry”.
When you look at things at a surface level, it is quite exciting. An intelligent agent that can do a lot of the “boring” or repetitive tasks for you — something that will do all of the things that eat into your precious time during the work day. An agent that understands language and can communicate effectively with people, at scale. It represents a quantum leap in automation —…
