Whose Noise Is This?

The noise around AI has become so big, so loud and so loaded recently that it bears almost no resemblance to the reality of what people are experiencing. We're seeing trillion dollar stock market bets, data centre acceleration, and rapid arms races between AI labs and countries. And, in the latest wave of headlines, the risk of an existential threat to humanity.

Much of it comes from people with something to gain: labs heading for IPOs, politicians staking out positions in the 'race', markets pricing in the future. Meanwhile most people and companies are still working out what AI is useful for and how to embed it. There is a huge gap.

The fears are not irrational, and there is an understandable wave of negative sentiment towards AI because of them. If you've felt some of that unease yourself, you're in good company. It's a reasonable response to big claims arriving faster than anyone can properly assess them.

But the hyperbole and sheer scale of the conversation, not to mention the speed at which the technology is being relentlessly developed, are out of step with the readiness of business and society more broadly. That makes it harder to think clearly about AI's place in our lives and work.

So what does that mean in practical business terms? I think it goes back to being deliberate about what needs our attention (back to the name of this newsletter!).

Not every new model release or announcement or headline needs a response, in fact that would be near impossible for most business leaders. Some things clearly need action - particularly when there are implications for security, policy, or people. Other developments are worth experimenting with, such as new workflow capabilities that can be safely tested.

Then there is the ongoing question of whether your AI investment and activity are actually improving outcomes. Are decisions getting better? Are workflows more efficient? Is time being freed up for higher-value activity?

Finally, more than ever, we need to be explicit about what we want to remain human. It's worth clarifying at leadership and wider team level which areas of work need to retain human judgement, accountability, trust and relationships.

The industry narratives may be operating at an entirely different scale, but these are the core decisions most organisations actually need to make.