The "Yeah, But Can It…?" mindset reveals how resistance to AI often masks deeper questions about human value and adaptation. Moving beyond the reflexive hunt for AI's limitations opens paths to meaningful collaboration and innovation, transforming skepticism into opportunity.
Photo Credit: Rob GrzywinskiOriginally posted on February 17, 2023 on LinkedIn. Edited from original version.
The Three Common Responses
I've noticed that the most common response people have had when I've introduced them to Large Language Models (LLMs) has been what I like to call the “Yeah, But Can It …?” response. Regardless of what incredible and unexpected example I show people, their first response tends to be “Yeah, But can it do <some other random thing>?”. This line of questioning continues until something is found that the LLM cannot do at which point the exercise is over and the individual moves on to another topic. They've defeated the dragon.(The other common response is the "Let's Make it Do Something Dumb" response. This tends to follow a similar path and also gets you lots of views in sensational media articles. LLMs can be exploited to do evil things, make no mistake of that, and we must begin to prepare and change our world to be ready NOW. I will cover this topic in detail in future articles. There's also the "Show Me More!" response. These are delightful discussions.)
Change Management in the Age of AI
A large part of my job as a leader, especially in the fast-paced world of startups, is to support individuals in grasping and adapting to the impacts of change. I find that change can often evoke emotions similar to those experienced from grief and loss, and can be broken down into the 5 Kübler-Ross stages of denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. An example of this is when a tool like ChatGPT is introduced and affects the way many people work. This “Yeah, But Can It …?” response can often be the result of denial or anger, emotions that are natural and expected. However, in order to move forward and embrace the potential of these tools, we must move beyond these initial reactions and be willing to explore the possibilities.
A Call to Action
I call on you to have a different perspective during this very unique moment in history. Ask not what your LLM can do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man. Use your time now to begin to understand where LLMs can enrich your life and those of your fellow passengers on Spaceship Earth. Ask “What can I do with this technology to help the world?” and “What can I do to help the people around me?”. Let’s use this technology for good, for exploration and for the betterment of our society. Let’s innovate and push the boundaries of what is possible. Let’s make sure we use this technology for the greater good, for the betterment of us all.
Learning from History
It's like this: with BBSs, we learned about the spread of malware and the need for antivirus software. Navigating networks taught us about firewalls and data security. Gopher and Mosaic introduced phishing and the importance of verifying sources. Downloading Linux from floppies (or later, torrents) highlighted the risks of open-source vulnerabilities. Napster brought copyright infringement to the forefront. Even Google, with its vast index, made us aware of misinformation and the need for media literacy. Each step forward in technology came with new lessons in caution, shaping our understanding of digital responsibility. LLMs are no different; we must learn their unique vulnerabilities and develop safeguards as we integrate them into our lives.
Start Your AI Journey Today
I challenge you to augment one new task a week with an LLM and see how it adds to your life. LLMs can be used for text generation, summarization, natural language understanding, question answering, and more. ChatGPT can provide alternative ideas for projects, give personalized recommendations, or help with research. If you write software and are not currently using GitHub’s Copilot, then now’s the time to install it. Use any of the zillion AI-based tools (search for “Generative AI Landscape” — CB Insights, for example, has a nice Lumascape-style overview).Let's change the dialog from away from “Yeah, But Can It …?” and move it towards “How Can It Help Me …?”. Go explore!(809 tokens)
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