Finding good advice about AI, or Why I’m No Longer Talking to Tech Bros About Tech

First, I need to be clear that I like - I mean I really like - tech and people who can do stuff with tech that I lack either the patience or the wit (or both) to do myself. I'm generally not great at being patient or paying attention to detail. Tech people are typically great at both. Tech people make the world go round. Tech people (and maths) made AI. And I love AI.

But - and you knew there was a 'but' coming - after a few days and weeks at tech conferences it's hard to ignore two pretty hefty - and probably related - issues:

1. The tech crowd isn't exactly a beacon for diversity‍

I've seen worse - ever seen a group of publishers and literary agents in one room? Oof. But it's a real shame not just because it inevitably means some jobs probably haven't gone to the best possible person, but also because diversity is great - and by great I mean it's more profitable and produces better outcomes - when you're making strategies and decisions and plans.

It's not surprising really. Put a group of similar people together and they'll have similar ideas and agree similar things. The chances they don't think of something that would be obvious to a lot of other people is huge.

Limit the conversation to let's say, for the sake of argument, white men, and you get regular, inevitable errors of judgement. And not even just the dumb errors like making racist soap dispensers. I mean things like forgetting to check or do anything about why women are more likely to die in car crashes.

Hear a different voice or two and you're more likely to figure out your risks, your black swan events* and your new ideas. You'll open new markets and solve more problems. Inclusion is just plain practical.

2. Companies are selling you their solution, whatever your problem. And they're often selling it with a dose of confidence that has more to do with self-belief than experience.

Do I need to explain this one? Nah. You know. My fridge doesn't need to be smart, it needs to be big and cold. And then there's the Amstrad E-m@iler. No one asked for that. Sometimes clever solutions are really having to look hard for the problem. Sometimes that's okay. It's your money. Buy a WiFi enabled fridge. Go for it. Then both of us can tell you you're out of milk.

Why does that matter when you're bringing AI into your organisation?

All of this is actually fine as long as you see the limitations, consider them, and then make good - informed, conscious - choices that work for you. Ask how the solution is working in practice. In real life. Better yet, hear it from the person actually using it. Find the other customers. Being the second person to buy something still makes you an early adopter.

Your AI journey demands more than tech know-how and unearned confidence. You want advice from people who understand your culture and values, who help you work out where and how AI can make your teams happier or more productive, and who then help you put the right solutions in place.

So, if that's not necessarily the tech bros - or brogrammers, if you will - who's your ideal AI adviser? We suggest a couple of candidates.

1. You. You know your business. You know what absorbs everyone's time even if delegation has helped resolve some of those issues for you personally. You know what information you have locked away in files, emails and databases. That means you know where you might want to apply generative AI to find information more quickly or do chores that free people up to do other things. You can ask, "What can AI do?" but it’s even better if you ask, "Can AI do this?" And keep asking. If AI can't do it today, it might be able to do it next week, or next month.

2. The Professionals. Look for people who know the tech market and understand the potential but who also understand your world and maybe even live in it. You want the folks who bridge the tech gap and work with you to figure out your AI roadmap.

We can help there, but I would say that wouldn't I? You should also just try some things out and build your confidence in the art of the possible. Next time you’re about to do a Google search, use Perplexity and ask a question instead. Ask pi.ai to write you a blog post (...?). Rewrite it in Korean to surprise and confuse your friends. Just don’t give away any private or sensitive data.

If you've already done all that, talk to your team about where all that enormous generative AI potential could transform productivity in your organisation and become the intelligent customers. Innovation can come from your tech team too, but do your IT colleagues commission you, or do you commission them?

Spend what you can afford and find partners who will help you establish an inclusive and strategic approach that works for all your teams. Your business will thank you, and so will your bottom line.

So tell us: what can gen AI do for you?

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* A rare, unexpected occurrence that has a major impact and is often rationalised after the fact as if it could have been predicted. The term comes from the historical belief that all swans were white until black swans were discovered in Australia, upending that assumption. It highlights how unexpected events can dramatically alter our understanding of the world. Ask Perplexity about the difference between deductive and inductive logic if you want to understand more but, at the same time, less. Spend long enough in that rabbit hole and you will also start to question if we really ever know anything.**

** We don't.

Engine builds private AI tools that let you keep things simple; private GPTs trained on content you curate, giving you answers your teams can rely on, and starting you on an AI change programme you can manage. We charge a one-off, affordable build cost and a single, fixed monthly cost for your whole organisation.