The Build
Posts
AI Equations

AI Equations

Simplicity, complexity, and automation.

Josh Cadorette
February 09, 2023

Howdy from Durham,

Welcome to the 2 new subscribers from last week.

There’s been a great deal of talk about what will/won’t get automated by AI.

I’m hoping to bring clarity to this through 2 simple equations.

What is going to get automated?

The best way I can answer this is by describing an AI product that I previously worked on.

ID Verification: we built a solution that helped government officials authenticate forms of identification, such as driver’s licenses.

Previously, workers had to manually type in the name and address of each license to match their information with what was on file. Now, all they had to do was scan them, and the data was extracted/sent to the necessary databases for verification.

We could even flag photoshopped images (someone altering their legal name or address) that wouldn’t have been detected by the human eye.

If it’s a simple and repeatable task (like typing info. from driver’s licenses into a database), then AI is going to automate it.

What isn’t going to get automated?

We know that simple + easily repeatable = easy to automate.

By that logic, we can assume that the inverse of this is:

Complex + unique = hard to automate.

Here are my thoughts on what this equation means.

The more creative the work, the higher the pay: our labor market will increasingly value creativity and critical thinking because these 2 things cannot be automated. Incentives drive outcomes, so this will point people towards more fulfilling career paths.

A risk I see: some folks may choose to become so reliant on automation that, instead of pursuing creativity and critical thinking, these skills begin to atrophy because they are more passive consumers. We saw increasing trends of this with the rise of the internet and mobile computing. This trend can/will continue under AI.

My prediction: similar to increased convenience making us crave challenge, increased automation will make us crave originality - man-made art, food, and music that we can see, taste, and hear in-person will rise in value. After all, life is circular and often paradoxical. The digital world will cause us to return to where we once came - doing in-person things that don’t scale and can’t be automated.

The Bottom Line: AI will make parts of our lives easier, but life will always be filled with complex, unique circumstances that require us to make hard decisions. We can’t automate our way out of that, and we shouldn’t. It’s what makes us human.

What I’m paying attention to:

How to Stop Being Rich by Derek Sivers, per Paul Millerd’s tweet

Balaji announces a podcast

Introducing the Network State Podcast.
The first episode features me and @VitalikButerin. We talk about starting new countries, upgrading Ethereum, and improving yourself!
— Balaji (@balajis)
5:18 AM • Feb 8, 2023

Michelle Varghoose discusses a personal board of directors

“Now I see we’re all limited by our own experiences and perspectives. Without knowing the details of my life, random people can only advise me by pulling on their own life experiences…

I’ve put together a list of people who I can discuss major life decisions with…

I love the name Board of Directors and seeing myself as a little startup. My team is a mix of family, friends and people in the creator community.”

Michelle Varghoose (source)