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128 points ArmageddonIt | 2 comments | | HN request time: 0.001s | source
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jampa ◴[] No.44501089[source]
I like Steve's content, but the ending misses the mark.

With the carriage / car situation, individual transportation is their core business, and most companies are not in the field of Artificial Intelligence.

I say this as someone who has worked for 7 years implementing AI research for production, from automated hardware testing to accessibility for nonverbals: I don't think founders need to obsess even more than they do now about implementing AI, especially in the front end.

This AI hype cycle is missing the mark by building ChatGPT-like bots and buttons with sparkles that perform single OpenAI API calls. AI applications are not a new thing, they have always been here, now they are just more accessible.

The best AI applications are beneath the surface to empower users, Jeff Bezos says that (in 2016!)[1]. You don't see AI as a chatbot in Amazon, you see it for "demand forecasting, product search ranking, product and deals recommendations, merchandising placements, fraud detection, translations."

[1]: https://www.aboutamazon.com/news/company-news/2016-letter-to...

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1. ryanrasti ◴[] No.44501389[source]
> With the carriage / car situation, individual transportation is their core business, and most companies are not in the field of Artificial Intelligence.

Agreed. The analogy breaks down because the car disrupted a single vertical but AI is a horizontal, general-purpose technology.

I think this also explains why we're seeing "forced" adoption everywhere (e.g., the ubiquitous chatbot) -- as a result of:

1. Massive dose of FOMO from leadership terrified of falling behind

2. A fundamental lack of core competency. Many of these companies companies (I'm talking more than just tech) can't quickly and meaningfully integrate AI, so they just bolt on a product

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2. jelder ◴[] No.44505202[source]
3. Layoffs in all but name, mainly in response to a changing tax environment. See also: RTO.