Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly integrated into the operations of many companies, with various applications being explored for both internal processes and customer-facing services.
From generating new ideas for toy cars to summarizing customer reviews, AI is proving to be a valuable tool for businesses seeking to innovate and streamline their operations.
DALL-E for Mattel’s Hot Wheels
Mattel, a leading toy manufacturer, has partnered with Microsoft to utilize OpenAI’s DALL-E image generator to come up with new ideas for Hot Wheels toy cars. By inputting specific keywords and parameters, DALL-E generates a variety of images that can inspire toy designers to create new and exciting products.
ChatGPT for CarMax, Snapchat, Instacart, and Coca-Cola
Another popular AI tool being adopted by companies is the ChatGPT language generator. CarMax, a used-car retailer, has been using a similar generative AI technology to summarize customer reviews. Snapchat and Instacart are integrating ChatGPT into their services to enhance their messaging and shopping experiences, respectively. Coca-Cola is also planning to use generative AI to create new marketing content.
Pressure on Businesses to Adopt AI
The widespread adoption of AI tools by consumers and employees has created pressure for businesses to also incorporate these technologies. Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey encourages embracing the risks of AI and experimenting intelligently, urging businesses to harness the potential of these tools.
However, some AI experts caution that companies should carefully consider the potential harms before rushing to adopt AI tools.
Considerations for AI Deployment
Claire Leibowicz from The Partnership on AI recommends that companies take a thoughtful approach to deploying AI technology. Anna Gressel, an attorney at Debevoise & Plimpton, advises businesses on using AI and suggests using AI tools as brainstorming “thought partners” that won’t produce the final product. Forrester analyst Rowan Curran believes that AI tools should speed up office tasks, not replace humans, and should be part of the workflow, not replace expert senior marketers and other controls.
Concerns with AI-Generated Content
As with any emerging technology, there are concerns associated with AI-generated content. Text generators like ChatGPT and Microsoft’s Bing chatbot can make writing tasks easier but also present misinformation as fact. Image generators trained on digital art and photography raise copyright concerns from original creators.
Gressel notes that copyright protection for the outputs of AI models is an open question, and companies should take care to ensure that AI-generated content does not infringe on others’ intellectual property rights.
Competition in the AI Market
Microsoft, Amazon, and Google are competing in the market for AI-generated synthetic imagery, audio, and other media by selling their cloud computing services to big organizations. Microsoft has invested billions more dollars into its partnership with OpenAI, while Google is playing catch-up, and Facebook parent Meta builds similar technology but does not sell it to businesses in the same way.
Amazon has a more muted tone but makes its ambitions clear through its partnerships, most recently with the startup Hugging Face, maker of a ChatGPT rival called Bloom. At Hugging Face’s platform, developers can exchange open-source AI models for text, image, and audio tools, which can serve as a basis for constructing diverse products.
The transparency is important for regulators to understand the models and regulate them, and for underrepresented people to understand where the biases can be so that they can be mitigated.
So, What’s Going On?
As companies seek to innovate and improve efficiency, AI tools are becoming increasingly popular. While there are concerns associated with the adoption of these technologies, companies can take steps to mitigate potential harms and use AI as a valuable tool for brainstorming and enhancing their operations. As AI technology continues to evolve and improve, it is likely that more companies will adopt these tools in the future.
However, it is important for businesses to carefully consider the implications of AI adoption and ensure that they are using these tools in a responsible and ethical manner. This includes being transparent about how the technology is being used, and taking steps to mitigate any potential risks or biases.
Moreover, companies should not rely solely on AI to replace human expertise and judgement. AI tools should be integrated into workflows as a way to speed up routine tasks and generate ideas, but the final decision-making and creative processes should still be overseen by human experts.
As the market for AI-generated media and content continues to grow, it is important for regulators to understand these models and ensure that they are being used in a way that is fair and ethical for everyone. By taking a thoughtful and responsible approach to AI adoption, businesses can harness the power of this technology to drive innovation, enhance efficiency, and create better products and services for their customers.
