AI by consent
I sat on a panel this week discussing AI, Carbon and hype, hosted by Else, with leaders of digital in business like Vodaphone, Amazon and IHG Hotels, yeilded interesting insights.
What Else with AI?
Given much of the public is still undecided on what the impact of generative AI will be. Businesses, and the media are too grappling with the direction of travel so forums for discussion from business leaders is vital.
This week that happened.
Else, Else is an experience design, strategy and innovation consultancy set it up and Harpreet Bushnell their Chief growth officer, asked me to sit on the panel.
Wildly imagined AI and it’s uses.
Else’s team, EJ and David, began with a presentation.
This presentation took the lid off what AI could possibly provide an individual when choosing to book a holiday, pulling together incredibly personal data sets, it showed that AI has the possibility to encourage “positive touch points” rather than the stressful ones. This tight and warm team bounce off each other and the encouragement of their dynamic is on that trickled into the audience.
It highlighted deep personal insights showing there is no doubt, that AI could have impact on your life as a whole, by determining if you need an extra hour in your hotel bed by scanning your health data, and then could restructure your day like your own personal secretary.
Turning to my right on my row, I met the Head of product for Amazon, we discussed, briefly, the data that would be required to part with for this ‘concierge agent’ for travel plans to be used.
It occurred to me, that consumer privacy deserved consideration, what could the ripples be? Would it be held by an overarching ‘agent’? What is the value for them? Would they share/sell this data, and what will said recipients do with it?
Surely everyone else in the room was having the same thoughts?
Digital business and digital journalism in the same room
One thing that starkly stood out for me was that I was possibly the only one coming from a media and journalism background, and my insights on how AI was impacting our lives came from largely different angles to my fellow panellists Sarah Woodbridge, Director of customer Journey management for Sainsbury and Hitesh Patel, Global Digital Director for gen8/IHG hotels who both offered great insight and depth on how they are seeking and determining ‘agents’ and how they move forward.
The beauty of this event, in the library at the Hoxton is that Bushnell bought together business leaders, founders and design leads from Vodaphone, Amazon, Sainsbury, John Lewis, all in the same swish room in Holborn with dinner and drinks.
Not too busy; enough to get real conversations started.
AI by consent
The hype, the novelty and the sheer capabilities of AI it is clear that AI is not a zero-sum gain.
In impassioned discussion it is clear to us all, Journalist and business leaders alike, we’re all standing at the precipice of the unknown.
No one is sure what will work, what legislation will be bought in, or in fact how other AI’s such as SenseNova in China be regulated, if at all, and will this help or hinder the OpenAI model if constrained by EU, UK or even US legislation.
So then, why not be a moral and ethically driven set of pioneers in the realms of AI.
Job losses will be inevitable, but then so will retraining, data sets given could be given with faith and trust that they will not be sold on, and thereby leaving the group contributing to the data worse off, as companies hold the items or medications they need at higher prices.
AI by consent could be the gamechanger for real value; offer the data on your healthcare, your shopping habits, your favourite shows in exchange for confidentiality, and privacy that simply means your data won’t actually be shared with an “agent” to show you’ve a hangover on your holiday, and so you need a later check out, and can’t make the brunch you booked on a boat to see the coral.
This is an idea I can really get behind, personally, as the privacy laws on social media mining and the previous government’s policies to be able to access your banking habits, facial recognition with racial bias really infringe on a free and safe democratic society. If we live in one at all.
The ramifications are intense, but it is important to see what is happening elsewhere, such as the Singapore government offering subsidies to it’s over 40 population to keep viable workers in the boom of the AI economy.
The hype of AI, or the fears of Carbon emissions
As for the hallmarks of any good discussion the room got involved, Carbon footprints were raised in the use of AI. Warren, founder of Else, raised the issue of the massive impact of AI’s Carbon footprint. A pressing issue for our times. In Dec 2023, MIT reported that generating an image using a powerful AI model takes as much energy as fully charging your smartphone, by anyone’s estimate that’s a lot of Carbon.
I suggested to the room that the world and particularly corporates and conglomerates would do well to incorporate impact climate change and discussed Just Stop Oil to illustrate that campaign groups are very concerned, as well as the younger population (some) led by Greta Thunberg.
I was viewed by the room as possibly too optimistic, and that we were in “a country of privilege” that could be a little more aloof, supported by Sarah Woodbridge, from Sainsbury.
Woodbridge explained that in reality, offering people greener delivery slots did not change consumer behaviour to change their Sainsbury delivery, instead opting for a time more suited to their own convenience. As customers effectively ignored the greener choice, she offered that only legislation would bring about the desired changes – she may well be right.
AI debates and discussions
These panels and imaginings of AI are important particularly as we are all walking in the unknown, except that we know change awaits us.
Many of the general public are unsure whether, on balance, generative AI will make their own lives and society better or worse as many are not aware of any of these products, and few have personal experience of using them frequently.
However, it will be younger people who are also more likely to have used generative AI growing up, that will be more positive about AI, and that generation will also have greater say of the significance of AI on the environment, by consent or otherwise.
I have many other ideas of how brilliantly this could go in the world of news and media innovation, so follow this substack to learn of them.
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No AI was used in the writing of these posts.