Plateau of Productivity

YouTuber Tomasz Rożek’s channel, “Science. I like It,” recently featured a fascinating discussion on “Next Steps of AI Expansion” with Aleksandra Katarzyna Przegalińska-Skierkowska. While the lack of English subtitles remains a mystery, the conversation itself is a must-watch.

Tomasz Rożek graduated in physics and journalism from the University of Silesia. In 2006, he obtained a Ph.D. in physical sciences (specializing in nuclear physics) from the Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry of the University of Silesia based on the thesis entitled “Study of the threshold production of hyperons in proton-proton interactions in COSY-11″[3]. He worked on his doctorate at the Forschungszentrum institute in Jülich. In 2020, he founded the “Science. I Like It Foundation”.

Aleksandra Katarzyna Przegalińska-Skierkowska is Polish philosopher, futurologist, doctor of humanities[3] and habilitated doctor of social sciences, publicist, since 2020 vice-rector for international cooperation at the Kozminski University in Warsaw. In the academic year 2016/2017, a visiting scholar within the MNiSW program at the Center for Collective Intelligence at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. Together with Dariusz Jemielniak, they are the authors of the first study program in Poland devoted to artificial intelligence in the field of management.

Plateau of productivity: Time to Be Smart About AI

The discussion explored the current state of AI adoption in businesses, now that the initial hype has settled.. Dr Przegalińska – Skierkowska points out that we’ve reached the so-called Plateau of Productivity on the Gartner’s Hype Cycle.

At this stage, we understand AI’s strengths and weaknesses. It’s time to use it strategically, not just for flashy innovations, but for sustainable success.

In other words, businesses need to be deliberate about AI deployment. It’s not just about maximizing gains; it’s also about avoiding straight-up losses.

Gartner’s General hype cycle for technology

source: Wikipedia

At this stage, we’ve assessed new technology and we understand its strengths and weaknesses. It’s time to use it strategically, not just for flashy innovations, but for sustainable success.

In other words, businesses need to be deliberate about AI deployment, not only to maximize the gains, but to avoid straight up losses

And what do we know about the stage of the Plateau of Productivity, according to Przegalińska – Skierkowska?

There are a multitude of areas, in which current AI models, in spite of expectation, fall behind humans. We all know this already, right? What is perhaps seldom understood, is this: with the current AI models the things will stay this way. It’s the wall that only the next technological breakthrough can change.
The infrastructure powering operational AI models is huge, vast, and requires a lot of energy, which does not exactly count as “green”.

This remains true for any industry and departament, eCommerce and Marketing included.

Current AI’s Limitations: Where Humans Shine

This means, while

building AI-Enabled Marketing Teams, CMOs should have a mapamap of marketing processes, providing necessary discernment, which of them should be AI-saturated, and which ought to be, executed by humans.

At least for now.

Let’s start with red zones, areas where AI currently performs worse and is more expensive than humans. . Each marketing team will have unique experiences with AI, but here’s a good starting point – asking AI (GTP) itself:

“While AI advancements offer substantial benefits, there are several areas in marketing where human expertise remains irreplaceable. We decided to ask GPT-4 about tasks in marketing that are currently better suited for humans, and here is what it answered:

Creative Strategy Development: Crafting unique and innovative marketing campaigns and brainstorming new ideas requires human creativity and intuition.
Emotional Content Creation: Writing compelling stories and creating visual content that resonate emotionally with audiences are tasks where human sensitivity and emotional intelligence are crucial.
Brand Voice and Personality: Developing a consistent brand voice that aligns with company values and crafting personalized messages reflecting brand personality demand human insight.
Client and Stakeholder Communication: Engaging in nuanced and empathetic conversations with clients and stakeholders, and addressing their needs through active listening, are areas where human interaction is essential.
Market Research and Analysis: Conducting in-depth qualitative research, such as focus groups and interviews, and interpreting nuanced market trends require human analytical skills and cultural understanding.
Strategic Decision Making: Making high-level strategic decisions involves balancing multiple variables and potential outcomes, a task suited for human strategic thinking.
Crisis Management: Handling public relations crises with sensitivity and empathy, and crafting appropriate responses to unforeseen events, require human judgment.
Networking and Relationship Building: Building and nurturing relationships with influencers, partners, and industry leaders are activities where human interaction is irreplaceable.
Ethical Considerations and Judgment: Making ethical decisions regarding marketing practices and ensuring alignment with societal values are tasks requiring human ethical judgment.
Cultural Sensitivity: Understanding and navigating cultural nuances in global marketing campaigns, and tailoring messages to diverse cultural contexts, need human cultural intelligence.

While AI can assist with many tasks in marketing, the human touch remains crucial for activities that require creativity, empathy, strategic thinking, and ethical judgment.”

End of citation from the expert. Wow,that’s quite a lot. And honestly, GPT4 seems more critical towards itself (and other models), than we are!

Alright, let’s now ask humans. In the article “AI vs. Humans in Marketing: Who Wins?” by Handson School Of Data Science confirms that while AI offers impressive capabilities, human intuition, creativity, and empathy remain irreplaceable in marketing.

Creativity and Emotional Intelligence

Humans excel in thinking creatively, developing compelling narratives, and understanding nuanced emotions. These traits help craft authentic brand stories and connect with audiences on a deeper level that AI struggles to replicate.

Building Genuine Relationships

Trust is crucial for business relationships. Humans build trust through authentic communication and empathy, understanding diverse perspectives. The personal touch in nurturing relationships is something AI cannot fully emulate.

The Synergy: Humans + AI = Unmatched Potential

The real power lies in combining AI and human capabilities. Collaboration, not competition, offers unparalleled benefits.

AI Augmenting Human Capabilities

Enhanced Decision-Making: AI provides data-driven insights for quick decisions, but humans make the final calls, considering ethical and strategic implications.
Efficiency and Scale: AI handles repetitive tasks, allowing marketers to scale efforts efficiently while maintaining a personalized touch.
Innovation Catalyst: By automating routine tasks, AI frees up time for humans to focus on creative campaigns and new marketing strategies.

The fields overlap, yet still we would say, GPT4 was more harsh in this judgment than humans are.

What Marketing Activities Seem AI-Tailored?

When it comes to green zones, CMOs should have at least basic understanding of:

Types of AI models currently operational
Types of task suited best for each AI model

Green? Not so much

Over the past few months, researchers have been sounding alarms about the significant energy demands of AI. However, as stated by Scientific American, a recent peer-reviewed study published in Joule is among the first to quantify this rapidly emerging issue. If current trends in AI capacity and adoption continue, NVIDIA is projected to ship 1.5 million AI server units annually by 2027. Operating at full capacity, these servers would consume at least 85.4 terawatt-hours of electricity each year—surpassing the energy usage of many small countries, according to the new analysis.

This will not go unnoticed by ever-increasing number of environment-sensitive consumers. The larger the company, the more it should take into consideration it’s AI-induced carbon footprint, to avoid being perceived as an outdated, environment-polluting, aggressive business, in spite of being innovative with AI incorporation.

So how to AI your business?

The rule of thumb seems to be that

the larger your company is and govern more processes, the more thoughtful and accurate AI implementation should be.

Small businesses do not even have to bother with Crisis Management and PR – no matter if human or AI-driven. This is simply beyond the scope of such companies. Their primary concerns will be content creation and automation anyway, so they can – and they do – implement AI functions without much hesitation or analysis.

Larger entities must meticulously evaluate AI implementation through the prism of their processes and needs. And in each case ask a simple question – is there a value?