Apple and OpenAI will see what we repeatedly do.

Hello! This is THE INSITG8ER. The uncomplicated blend of AI news translated into useful context, sprinkled with tactics rooted in the psychology of change management to spark action and guide the advancement of your career and organization. Today’s topics:

• What Apple and OpenAI are up to

• Aligning AI with your aspirations 

• AI for spreadsheets, not poetry 

• What to tell your kid about the future of work

• Using food to describe tech jargon

Data-Driven vs Purpose-Directed AI

Apple and OpenAI have partnered without exchanging any money. Apple integrates ChatGPT into Siri and other apps, while OpenAI gains access to Apple’s vast user base. When AI knows your habits and preferences it will be easier to interact with it because all the detailed info your phone knows about you is context needed to act on your behalf. But what version of you will it come to know?

The quote “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” is most commonly attributed to Aristotle. It alerts us that our repeated actions ultimately create who we truly are. This is something to keep in mind if we want to use all of the powers that AI is hinting it can give us. If I can use my iPhone to determine what I like, when I like it, how I like it, then I can train my personal AI to understand me better and to perform tasks the way that I would perform tasks. But if I leave it to monitor my behavior without understanding my aspirations it might just think I’m only interested in snacks and video games so my AI-generated grocery list will consist of chips and donuts while my schedule will be adjusted to improve my Mario Kart track time instead of my time at the track.

GUIDE TO THE HUMAN-SIDE OF AI
Goal Orientation

If excellence is not an act, but a habit, then we know we need to know which actions, with what frequency and sequence to improve performance. The same applies to using AI. Then, to get the most from generative AI requires an understanding of performance management and executive functions. People who have high-level executive functions can orient actions (their own and others) toward a goal with less effort and adjustment. When you think of generative AI like a child without executive functions you begin to understand how to give it direction and how to keep it on task. If you have young kids, you know any complex task requires clear and constant direction. However, if the task has already been done repeatedly by the child (a.k.a. training) the task gets done without you. This is how generative AI works, you can go to a new ChatGPT prompt and start fresh, or you can use a trained model or GPT to do a specific task or series of tasks.

Applied to Work: Workflow Automation

Routine and repetitive tasks can become automated by a series of AI-supported apps, leading to a shift in job roles from processing actions to stewards of process and creative process designers. There will be a growing demand for jobs requiring these higher-order skills leveraging critical thinking, creativity, and emotional intelligence (executive functions?). So early workflow automation will look like getting your kid ready in the morning, you’ll divide the time into segments, sequence the task in order of importance, and stay nearby to realign the kid away from the LEGOs and back to brushing her teeth.

Applied to Business: Personalization and Predictive

Apple’s AI named ‘Apple Intelligence’ and Microsoft’s ‘CoPilot’ AI will be able to personalize communication, recommendations, and experiences based on user preferences and patterns. Predictive analytics will allow professionals to lower the ‘Coordination Tax’ from scheduling, services, and meetings.

Prepare our next Generation: Foster Mastery

Developing mastery through cultivating domain expertise, honing critical thinking and problem-solving skills, embracing continuous learning, teaching interpersonal and communication abilities, and specializing in human-centric roles will position young professionals to complement and guide AI systems, ensuring their relevance and value in the AI-driven workforce.

TODAYS AI ACTION
Improving Spreadsheet Skills

Prompt Tip: Write Detailed Clear Instructions

Be very specific in your requests to the model for better results. If the output isn't what you want, clarify your preferences to improve the response.

DIY AI: Use ChatGPT to answer formatting questions.

Include details in your query to get more relevant answers. Instead of: How do I add numbers in Excel? Try: How do I add up a row of dollar amounts in Excel? I want to do this automatically for a whole sheet of rows with all the totals ending up on the right in a column called "Total". OpenAI

Tool: Sheet AI

Sheet AI turns plain English into spreadsheet magic. Just describe what you need; it uses genAI to direct the spreadsheet app for you.

ENTERPRISE AI ELEMENTS
What is a Tech Stack?

A tech stack is like a layered cake, with each layer representing different technologies working together to build apps and websites. Often represented at the bottom or top, you have the foundation with databases where all the information is stored. Above that are servers and APIs, which ensure the right data gets to the right place. Then there's the front end, the part you see and interact with, like the frosting on the cake. On top of that, you might have advanced AI like a Large Language Model (LLM), handling smart language tasks. Together, these layers create a cohesive and efficient tech stack.