Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:17] Speaker B: Hello, my name is Jim Bradfield. Welcome to Ever Changing Technology.
On this show we discuss the process of innovation in technology that forces the shift in behavior and business systems. As we evolve from point A to point B, we identify current technology, their limitations, and explore new solutions to improve current systems.
Today's guest is an amazing guy, Dr. Alan Vaddo.
He's a leading voice in emerging technologies including artificial intelligence, blockchain, and my favorite, quantum computing.
As an AI evangelist, executive leader and technology strategist, he helps organizations from startups to global enterprises navigate disruption, adopt innovation and unlock new possibilities in a rapidly evolving digital world.
That's a pretty amazing bio there by the way, Alan.
[00:01:21] Speaker A: I appreciate that. Thanks, Jim. Yeah, I appreciate that.
[00:01:26] Speaker B: So the tech world moves at a lightning speed and we were just talking about lightning from last night's lightning storm here. Yeah, and for most people it feels impossible to keep up. Now in this segment we're going to talk about how to stay grounded and grow with change, even when it feels overwhelming.
So why does it feel like the moment we learn something, it's already outdated?
[00:01:52] Speaker A: Yeah, that is an issue. And I don't think AI has helped that issue at all. I think it's of course made it worse because technology in general will build on itself exponentially.
So every single breakthrough enables a whole bunch of other breakthroughs and a whole bunch of other innovations. And so there's this cascading effect that always takes place. And then on top of that you've got millions of developers that are working things simultaneously. And nowadays you've got instant global communication on top of that. And so any single innovation that takes place, it's going to spread and it's going to evolve and it's going to change at a speed that we are just not used to. And so, you know, it's really not people imagining things, you know, quite honestly, it's the pace has just accelerated dramatically compared to 20 years ago. And I think it's only going to get faster and folks kind of need to prepare for that.
[00:03:04] Speaker B: Well, yeah, and it's very much like, you know, it used to be a marathon, right, for technology and things like that. Now it's a full out sprint. So how does somebody, what's the first step? Keeping up without burning out? I mean, what do they do?
[00:03:20] Speaker A: Well, you've gotta, you've gotta one, you've gotta stay focused anymore. You know, it used to be, you know, we always said that there was a big funnel and you could funnel all these innovation ideas through this funnel and you know, what came out of the bottom, depending on how long that took, was definitely something that you could move ahead with. But now you cannot afford to take six months to do a pilot or a year to do certain types of full integrations because we just don't have that kind of time.
Now you really have to focus on what I say, fundamentals over features instead of chasing a brand new tool or some sort of update that comes along with that. Got to understand what the core is and you've got to just make sure that that persists really across whatever that technology space that you're, that you're trying to deal with. Because, you know, it's really the cost of entry now is, that's not the problem. It's the speed to entry that folks are worried about. And if you think about an example, that would be something like, you know, learning how to, you know, databases work conceptually is more valuable than memorizing one specific database software. Right. And so just trying to pick, you know, one area to go deep in rather than trying to stay current on all the different technologies that are out there are, you know, I think that's the only way that you can do it. Otherwise, you know, you're, you're going to see a lot of folks that are going to struggle with that, especially if it's in the AI space.
[00:05:01] Speaker B: Yeah. Are you finding a lot of burnout in, in the area trying to keep up and, you know, and, and having people run that race?
[00:05:09] Speaker A: Oh, yeah, yeah. We even myself, you know, when it first started, I, I had over a hundred different large language models that I was benchmarking. Folks would send me a whole bunch of different ones that I could play with. And at the time I loved it because each one was a little different.
Each one might give me a little bit of different answer. Each one I could hack a little bit different and try it out and try to release the filters on it. But now it's impossible. It's, you know, even, even staying current on, you know, and being an expert on a couple of them is, are, you know, is difficult because there's so many different things that they can do now.
[00:05:49] Speaker B: Amazing.
So, you know, what do you guys do to help businesses adapt without just starting over?
[00:05:57] Speaker A: Yeah, we, we, we tell folks that you cannot get into AI for the sake of getting into AI. If you are not focused on what your core business is, then getting into AI doesn't make any sense if it's not what going to help it. You know, I know, I know folks early on were chasing, chasing these because they thought it would be a new business line that they could get into and, you know, maybe it would accelerate a certain segment just a little bit that they would say, we are AI enabled. And that has not worked out for those folks. And, you know, that's where the whole fear of missing out, you know, concept really started to hit the AI, you know, industry in that everybody was jumping on the bandwagon so quick, they weren't thinking about, oh, jeez, is this really going to help me? Is it going to. Is it going to take my business and really elevate it to a new level?
And post analysis, they were like, no, but they didn't look at it pre analysis either. And so that's, that's a lot of challenge that we try to, you know, we try to help people overcome. If it doesn't fit, don't do it.
[00:07:12] Speaker B: Yeah. And I think, I think, you know, kind of building on that a little bit is one, you know, we see a lot of people that say, oh, you know, we're going to go into this AI thing, you know, and we're going to do all this and we're just going to let it run. And I think, you know, you've got to have a plan, right? You've got to go through everything and, you know, if you don't have a tech background or anything like that, I mean, are you still able to make this work?
[00:07:38] Speaker A: Well, you know, early on, you know, I would, I would tell folks that your IT team should not be your AI team because they are very different and they're very different ramifications associated with that. I think it is getting easier, though, for, you know, as new technologies are released, they're making it, you know, easier for, you know, folks to implement it. However, if you don't think about the ramifications associated with how that AI is going to interact with your customers or your users, that's when you can run into some big problems. Because the reality is that it takes a lifetime to build a reputation that is seen favorably with your customers.
But if you don't pay attention to what the AI is doing and check on it every so often, 15 seconds, it can ruin an entire lifetime's effort of building those relationships because it hallucinates, it tells something wrong or does something else, you know, and I tell people that is not a risk that they should take. So build it as part of your plan, do it the smart way, integrate it the right way, put it in your technology roadmap, and then treat it like any other tech, any Other technology because otherwise it could be a disaster.
[00:08:59] Speaker B: Yeah. So, you know, somebody like, who's maybe not there, who hasn't even thought about it yet, is it too late for them to catch up or you know, can they actually, actually do that kind of thing and put it into their technology plan and still make this work in time?
[00:09:20] Speaker A: Well, what I, what I tell people is it sort of depends on what your, your competitors are doing.
You know, if you, if you are the last one in your competitive space to adopt AI and it really is a significant game changer in that space. And in some spaces it's, it's significantly more of a game changer than in others. But you know, from a discussion perspective, if you're the last one, then it probably is going to be too late because you will probably not, not be in business, quite honestly, if you are the very last one. But in some spaces they are just now embracing it because they've never thought about using AI in that manner. And whether it's the medical field and looking at different types of scans and tests to a service desk, AI enabled, service desk type opportunity, you know, those are very different. And you know, not to talk about the legal, you know, ways that it can slow down the process, but just in general thinking about, you know, what are the influencers, how can AI help? Is it the right time or is it not quite ready for prime time yet? Think about it that way and then you're, you're, you're gonna, you're, you will enter the market at the time that is right for you and you should be able to take advantage of it.
[00:10:53] Speaker B: Perfect. Well, that's interesting, man. I'll tell you, for those watching who'd like to connect or follow your work now, where can they find you online? Like, I know you've got a giant website with all of your stuff on it, but give them the updates and tell them where to reach you.
[00:11:10] Speaker A: Yeah, they can go to Ellenbedo AI. That's the easiest way to get a hold of me. Or they can go on LinkedIn and, or they can, you know, watch AI Today on Now Media on Wednesdays at 4pm Central.
[00:11:24] Speaker B: Yeah, that's an awesome show. So repeat that again please.
[00:11:27] Speaker A: Yeah, it's AI Today on Now Media and we're on Wednesdays at 4pm Central.
[00:11:34] Speaker B: Yeah, and if anybody wants to see anything, by the way, on anything with AI, I'll tell you are just absolutely stupendous. So anyway, listen, we really appreciate you being on the show and thank you very much for taking the time and we're going to see you next segment.
[00:11:52] Speaker A: Sounds good.
[00:12:11] Speaker B: And we're back. I'm Jim Bradfield and this is Ever Changing Technology here on NOW Media Television.
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So we're back on Ever Changing Technology with our guest, Dr. Alan Fido, helping us better understand the realities and myths of artificial intelligence. And myths there are.
Now, the fear about AI replacing jobs and changing society is everywhere.
Now, is this really about loss or opportunity or are we exploring how to stay in control?
So let us know what you think, Alan. I mean, that's one of the big deals that everybody's afraid of right now.
[00:13:45] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And I think just in general, too, the fear really comes from uncertainty. And I think it doesn't help when AI is really speeding up. And you know, it's, it's, everybody is saying that they're using it and they're doing a whole bunch of things with it, but then, you know, you turn around and you look and a company is laying off 5,6000 people. Right. Potentially. And the cycle doesn't help. Right. I mean, that's, that's part of it. But then, you know, if, if folks would take a step back, they would see, you know, earning seasons. You know, it's not unusual for companies to unload and, you know, employees during earnings season.
Then they would say, okay, well, maybe AI is not, is not the culprit doing that. And so, you know, the media doesn't help. And I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna blame just the media for it, though. But, you know, there's some prominent folks that will say some radical things like, oh, general, you know, AI is, we're not too far from X or we're almost hitting a singularity or whatever, whatever that is. Right. And it's just, it's just, you know, headlines. The reality is, is that AI is not as advanced and sophisticated as folks would like to think. You know, some folks that have, have tried to, you know, name the company that hasn't tried to replace all of their service desk people with AI or at least a good portion of of them with AI. Well, guess what, it hasn't worked out well.
And you know, the speed of AI and the advancements that are taking place, you know, especially with ChatGPT and since from launch to where they are now, you know, it caught people so off guard that I think that is, that is a significant influencer, you know, as well. And I tell people that the reality is, is that it's not AI right now that is replacing jobs.
It's people that know how to use AI and really elevate their skill sets. Those are the ones that are replacing folks that don't know how to use it or refuse to use it. And I think that trend is going to continue for a while longer until we have some other technology breakthrough that will assist AI and really allow it to do things that humans do. Because right now, today, they can't, they can't think through different problems. There's always something, even for the simplest workflows, there's always something that can throw a monkey wrench into it, and AI is just not there yet.
[00:16:32] Speaker B: Yeah, and you know, I kind of see that a lot.
One of the things that I see in, that's being done with AI is in some of the technologies my group's in, which is in the wireless network. And we see that having to do with automation and that kind of technology for plants and warehouses. So, you know, is that, is, is that going to be a helpful tool or is that, are people going to look at that as a threat who have those warehouse jobs now and can't learn it?
[00:17:05] Speaker A: Well, you know, I think, I think that's going to be the, that's going to be the question that a lot of industries are just starting to think about, is what skill sets do I need to be able to use AI? Now I'll tell you for the, the software that I'm building, we want, we want everybody to be able to take advantage of it. Because I truly believe that if you use it the right way and the software is developed the right way, then AI and humans can have a wonderful relationship where both skill sets are scaled. And I said both skill sets, meaning the AI needs the human just as much because having decisions and giving it perspective and giving that, oh, I've got that gut feeling. AI never has a gut feeling. Right. And so it's those kind of things where you can really elevate the performance of both. And I don't have A good answer for that yet, because I've seen it work really well in some cases and not quite as well in other cases. But I want people to be able to get to it by clicking. You know, I have a saying with, with my team, you know, 10 clicks or less, somebody needs to be able to be, to deploy AI to solve whatever problem that they have. And they don't have to be AI experts, they just have to be experts in their field and then they're assisted by the AI. That's, that's what I'm, that's what I'm hoping that we'll get to. And you know, that's, you know, that's a goal, but I think that's the right goal.
[00:18:43] Speaker B: Yeah, that's, that's interesting. But you know, taking a look at that in, you know, in a lot of the warehouses and places like that, they bring people off the street and they have, you know, hiring groups in, in the lobby of the warehouse.
Now, is that, you know, what kind of jobs are actually going to be changing due to AI? Is that going to replace all of those people and they're going to have to go back to school or, you know, what do you think?
[00:19:09] Speaker A: Well, I don't think it, I don't think it will replace all of them.
You know, I think what I'm seeing for the most part is that there are certain things of course that are ahead of other vertical spaces in vertical markets. Like, you know, the service desk industry has, you know, has, has changed a lot. But the reality is, is we've seen it, that, that that transition has been going on for a few years as folks have tried to modernize their, their IT and their infrastructure and those kind of things. I think when you start looking at more specialty type skill sets and you know, spectrum management and wireless technologies and software defined networks, that is one of those areas that it's going to take time because the AI is just not ready for it. Now that doesn't mean that it's not a good opportunity for engineers to use it to look at automating deployments or creating cybersecurity type software that can help mitigate risk for those types of endpoints. But the realities are, the more complicated the industry, the less likely it is for now for AI to be able to replace those jobs. And you cannot bring just somebody in off the street even for a service desk opportunity and give them AI because guess what, there are people skills that go along with that. And most of the challenges with service desk is that the people say something Wrong. Not the AI. So you still have to be trained on those soft skills, no matter what you're doing.
[00:20:53] Speaker B: So how do you, you know, what are the, the employers are trying to bring this in to their businesses? I mean, what are they, what are they trying to do? Are they, are they sending people to classes?
Are they trying to have that internally for hr? I mean, how do they, how do they prepare for their workers for this in the workplace?
[00:21:15] Speaker A: Well, I think the biggest thing that I, you know, when, when you take a step back and I always tell them, take a step back and what do you want to be when you grow up? That's always the base, you know, and if you can answer that question, that's great. If you can't answer that question, then that's, that means you are not ready to deploy AI because you have to follow your normal processes. You've got to look at what your business plan is, you've got to look at what your growth targets are. You've got to look at all of those things before you start deploying AI into the space. Because one you, you know, if you just throw it out there and your employees don't know about it, that's not going to go well at all. I promise you that I will get a phone call that there's a disaster that needs to be fixed. That's usually when I get a phone call, is when somebody has done something like that. You don't want to do that. You've got to follow your processes. You've got to get your people involved in the process so they buy into it.
The worst thing that you can do to a staff is to say, here you go, here's your new AI tool that you're going to use. Because the first thing they think is it's going to replace me. Why do I want to train my replacement?
And that may not be the employer's intentions at all. It could be to help them focus on customer relationships or focus on the real problems and not the minutiae that the AI can handle. And so having a good rollout plan, using your normal change management, you know, processes that you have, those don't go away. Because if you have a bad process, all AI is going to do is make your bad process faster. That's it.
And we don't want that.
[00:22:55] Speaker B: All right, so basically what you're saying is that everybody's going to work together, but there's got to have to be an awful lot of training going on in the system, right? And in order to get this thing implemented within businesses itself. And it's going to take a while for everybody to kind of get a good feel for it. Right?
[00:23:15] Speaker A: That's right. That's right.
And don't, don't let, don't, don't let fear of missing out dictate what you do and how you do it because that, that is not a good business plan.
[00:23:28] Speaker B: Fomo. FOMO is never good for anybody.
[00:23:30] Speaker A: Never. Never.
[00:23:32] Speaker B: All right, so you have an awesome background and website and a lot of information on your stuff. So tell our viewers where you can be seen and the best place to look around for your information on AI and innovation.
[00:23:53] Speaker A: Yeah, so they can go to my website at AlanBedot AI and I've got a. You're right. I have a lot of, a lot of information on there.
I don't keep up with the blog as well as I should, but they can find me at other places, right? They can come, they can watch the TV show that I have up with now media at on Wednesdays at 4pm Central Time. And we talk about a lot of different topics with AI. And really, you know, I want, I want everybody to be able to use it and take advantage of it.
[00:24:22] Speaker B: That's awesome, man. I'll tell you, I mean, for everybody who hasn't seen it, his website has the most awesome information of anything that I've ever seen. So you guys be sure to take a look at it and review everything that he's got.
All right, man, it's been good to talk to you. We'll see you on the next segment.
[00:24:44] Speaker A: Sounds good.
Foreign.
[00:25:03] Speaker B: And we're back. I'm Jim Bradfield and this is Ever Changing Technology here on NOW Media Television.
You guys loving what you're watching? Don't miss a moment of Ever Changing Technology or any of your favorite NOW Media TV shows.
Live or on demand, anytime, anywhere.
Download the free Now Media TV app on Roku or iOS and enjoy instant access to our full lineup of bilingual programming.
English and Spanish.
Prefer to listen on the Go catch the podcast version of the show on Now Media TV website at www.Now Media. From business and breaking news to lifestyle, culture and everything in between, now Media TV is streaming 24 7.
Whenever you are ready.
All right, so we're back on Everchanging Technology with our guest, Dr. Alan Beto. Now, as we tackle one of the most mysterious topics in tech today, Quantum computing. So quantum computing sounds futuristic.
You've seen it in movies, you've seen it on TV shows. But it's becoming more and more real every day.
So now what does it mean? And why are everyday people caring about quantum computing? Alan?
[00:26:33] Speaker A: Well, I'll tell you. The first system that I used was in 2004, and I got to work with it for the army, and I wrote some software around that. And so it was a quantum annealing machine, and it was D Wave's first machine that they had released. But, you know, there are some pieces of quantum that are running today and can solve an awful lot of problems. And so if you think about what a traditional computer is, and I try to explain this from a light switch perspective, because, you know, with, with your, your laptop and your other systems, you really have, you know, a way to process zeros and ones, right? That's how it happens. You flip the switch up, you're there, you let a one through, you flip it down, a zero goes through. And so it's either going to be on or it's going to be off.
Now with quantum, doesn't work that way. So you've got what's called qubits or, you know, quantum bits, and they can both be on and off simultaneously.
And so that confuses a lot of people. But, you know, it's, it's like a coin, you know, it's spinning in the air and it just will consistently.
It can be heads or tails or heads and tails, right? Now, the reason for that is that, you know, think about the number of numbers that are between 0 and 1, and it's an infinite amount, right? And so with a quantum computer, you're solving not for zeros and ones, but you're solving for a distribution, an infinite distribution in many of them between 0 and 1. And so you start to think, holy cow, then, you know, that allows me as a scientist to look at solutions that are, you know, many at the same time. And so high performance computers that are traditional may take for some problems, years and hundreds of years to solve, or you just can't solve them today. Whereas with a quantum computer, you can actually solve it in 5, 10, 15, 20 minutes just because of the number of different solutions that, that you can come up with at the same time. And that's really what the power of quantum machines are. Now, I don't want to, I don't want to say, of course, that it's going to replace your laptop anytime soon, because that is not the case. And having a general quantum computer that can solve a whole bunch of different problems at the same time is not the case either. That's what folks are working on. And there's so many breakthroughs that that have to take place in the, in the future for us to be able to get to that point. But for certain systems like quantum annealing machines, you know, it is very good for characterization and optimization. And if those are the types of problems that you're trying to do, you can do that today. And it's not science fiction, it's science now.
[00:29:40] Speaker B: Amazing. Yeah, that's absolutely amazing. I mean, and that's why I guess, you know, one of the things we, we need to kind of get out there is that everyday people and business owners should care about quantum computing. Computing because it's just so, you know, it's going to be pervasive and it's going to be so simple for them actually to learn it, even though it seems like super complicated.
But you know, if you, if you watch the movies and TVs, I, I bet you that that's what's, it's going to be that simple once they get it all perfected. Would you agree with that?
[00:30:16] Speaker A: I would agree 100% with that. Because even today if you can program in Python, you can download 5 or 6D wave quantum annealing libraries and you can put in 10 lines of code and you can run a quantum simulation or if you need to run directly on their cloud based, you know, machines that they have, that's really a hybrid environment.
The number of lines of code are, you know, you may be 50, maybe 100 depending on what your problem is, but it is very doable. And it's not like you have to learn a completely different language to be able to do that. And if you're in the supply chain space or you're trying to optimize, say for instance, a maintenance schedule or something like that, Quantum annealing is a perfect way for you to optimize those sort of things in a time effective manner and you can integrate that into your everyday, you know, type systems that you will see a significant benefit from, from doing that.
[00:31:22] Speaker B: So essentially then what you're saying is every industry, everything from farmers on up should be able to benefit from quantum breakthroughs and things like that, right?
[00:31:34] Speaker A: Oh, absolutely, absolutely. And they, you know, there, there's a ton of research that has been done with just the, the quantum annealing machines from you know, forming new, you know, medicines to, you know, these larger problems that oftentimes folks don't even think about, you know, a maintenance schedule is, is a good example of that because you know, if you think about trying to, you know, optimize, you know, when are you going to take your equipment in to have it serviced and you've got a large, you know, amount of equipment that you have to have.
You know, 15 pieces of equipment. Trying to use AI is already beyond what it can do. Heck, even 7, 8, 9, 10 pieces of equipment is too much for AI to be able to handle today. And that's where Quantum Annealing really will help you because that distribution and the way that it solves problems is a great way to use that and it's not hard to program well, you know.
[00:32:41] Speaker B: And so that kind of brings me to a question of, you know, what should we be doing today to prepare? Now one of the things that I'm concerned about is that, you know, a lot of the management of these companies are still a lot of older people, you know, and, and what typically happens is they're just not into this thing and they look at it as though it's just a fad or some other kind of thing. And you know, I'm, I'm concerned that they are not going to allow this to be, you know, promulgated around the company. So, so what do you, what do they have to do to prepare for this shift in, in Quantum?
[00:33:23] Speaker A: Well, I think, I think if they can, if they can treat it like any other technology and ignore Quantum and don't, don't, don't say the word Quantum because people, and I can tell you, people immediately, immediately think, oh, that's science fantasy. Not even science fiction. It's science fantasy. That's never going to happen.
Well, they're looking at it the wrong way. And I think it's just like AI. It's just like distributed ledgers and blockchain. It's just another technology and you have to do your due diligence around it. You've got to present a business plan, an integration plan. You've got to justify the investment that goes along with that. And you know, granted, Quantum may need a little bit more convincing for some folks in the management chain, but once they see that it's real, you can get real results from it. And there's a, there's a cost benefit to it. You know, if you can convince them on the business side, then that's where, that's where you'll get to play with the toys. If you can't play, if you can't convince them business wise that it's a wise investment, then you're not, you're not going to win that argument.
[00:34:35] Speaker B: Yeah, and, and I guess, I guess that's what I'm seeing a lot of too, is that trying to get this to somebody that really, you know, looks at it as oh okay, just another fad or just another problem or whatever I think is going to be, you know, kind of an issue. And I, oh yeah, that's, I don't know if the answer is more and more TV shows, which I think it is. You know, I like that idea. Right.
And more and more ads and you know you've got 800, 000 views in a, in a week. You know, that's, that's some pretty impressive, you know, information going out there. So, so where are people interested in learning more about the quantum computing?
Where do you recommend they go? Obviously I would suggest they go to your website and your information but where else can they go as well?
[00:35:33] Speaker A: Well, I, I tell people, believe it or not, that's one of the first things I encourage people to ask.
Chat GPT, Claude, any of those large language models that they feel comfortable using, go ask IT to explain to them and it, whatever the industry is or whatever their comfort level is or however they want to receive that information, ask those large language models to explain to them how it can be used, what it can be used for and is it worth investing in. Not because I want them to listen necessarily to the advice and follow it through and do all this other stuff but it gives them a perspective that they have not received from anybody else because it's not their manager that has said oh no, quantum's a lie. It's, it's B.S. it's not real.
It's an independent, you know, a source that is presenting it in a fashion that they will easily understand. And that is where the benefit of, of that is. I don't want them necessarily to hear it from me and just go do it and take it from gospel. I don't want them to hear it from somebody that is a non believer getting it.
That additional perspective is going to benefit them the most.
[00:36:53] Speaker B: Awesome. All right, give us your website again and, and where they can see your stuff.
[00:36:57] Speaker A: Yeah, it's Alanbedo AI. I've got a lot of information up there or you know, they can, you know, watch the AI Today TV show on Now Media on Wednesdays at 4pm Central.
[00:37:09] Speaker B: Awesome man. Well listen, appreciate your discussion. This is, it's one of my favorite ones so I appreciate it.
[00:37:16] Speaker A: Yeah, yeah, me too.
[00:37:36] Speaker B: And we're back. I'm Jim Bradfield and this is Ever changing Technology here on NOW Media Television. You guys loving what you're watching? Don't miss a moment of ever changing technology or any of your favorite NOW Media TV shows live or on demand, anytime, anywhere.
Download the free Now Media TV app. It's on Roku or iOS and enjoy instant access to our full lineup of bilingual programming. Remember, that's in both English and Spanish.
Prefer to listen on the go catch the podcast version of the show on Now Media TV website at www.nowmedia tv.
From business and breaking news to lifestyle, culture and everything in between, now Media TV is streaming 247 ready whenever you are Foreign so we're back on ever changing technology with our guest, Dr. Alan Badeau. We're wrapping up today's conversations looking at how small business can compete in a tech dominated world. So welcome back. Alan.
[00:38:53] Speaker A: Hi. It's great to be here.
[00:38:55] Speaker B: Yeah. So, you know, one of the things that we've kind of talked about before is what do you do when, you know, when you're not a tech giant and you're a small business? How do they actually compete? What do they do to learn how to take advantage of this amazing technology?
[00:39:19] Speaker A: Yeah, I think one of the things that small businesses forget and a lot of people depending on what the industry is and it's that awe factor, you know, that you're, you're a small business and you're looking up and you know, you're like, oh boy, you know, look at that building that they have and look at all those people that they have work for them and oh, they must be, you know, so far ahead of everybody else. Well, they're missing an opportunity because especially with AI and the rate at which it is changing, then that by nature is really a, a leveler all by itself because, you know, the bigger you are, it's just like a train. The longer it takes to move it, the longer it takes to stop it. And once that momentum gets going, going, you know, pivoting and, and taking a sharp turn is not the easiest. When you're a small business, you have agility, you have, you know, potentially personal relationships.
You know, you may have some deep knowledge that other, you know, larger businesses just don't have. You know, I remember, you know, some, you know, opportunities that I was chasing after. And you know, some of the comments that I heard from, you know, the buyer was I never saw the vice president or the president of that company. So when I had a problem escalating, it was an issue.
Well, when you're a small business, if you have that same contract, that's your bread and butter. And so if there's an issue, I bet the president is going to hear about it. And I bet the president's going to make a phone call to say, hey, I will do whatever I have to do to make this right.
That's an advantage that small businesses have, and you don't need AI or any other technology to do that. But when you start to layer in things like AI and things like offering different services with AI, that's when your ability to truly know what the customer wants and then layer in technology gives small businesses a significant advantage. And it is a strength when you can amplify it with AI as opposed to a weakness. And we're seeing a lot of that in the defense side and the industrial base. We're seeing it all over the place where going to the big boys is not the answer anymore. And so they're starting to branch out. A lot of commercial companies are doing the same because, you know, they don't want to have their, all their eggs in one basket. And that risk profile that they have, you know, they've got to, they've got to mitigate that one way or the other. Going to small businesses is a great way to do that.
[00:42:17] Speaker B: Wow. Yeah, that, that's, that's heartening for, you know, there's so the, the largest percentage of business is small business.
And, you know, it's heartening to hear that, I'm sure, for everybody, because, man, you know, I would have thought, oh, man, I'm gonna miss out. There's no way I can handle this. But, you know, I, I just, you know, leveling the playing field is what you're kind of talking about, right? You want to make sure. Because you can do a personal, you, you can really be personal into your customer, right? And so it's the right way to go, right?
[00:42:56] Speaker A: Oh, absolutely. And when you start looking at the tools that go into that though too, then that's where you really can shine.
Because, you know, I, I can tell you today there are a lot of large businesses who have still banned using any sort of AI technology, you know, in their environments.
And you start to think, wow, it's, you know, and that's been. ChatGPT has been around really since about 2018, late 2018, and the advantage that they have, if they can use it the right way and show that they are using it the right way versus a large company who is supposed to have the resources to be able to do that, but it's chosen not to do that for whatever reason, then your story significantly changes. Because whether it's cloud and enabling more cloud or more capacity or, you know, these no code platforms that are out there, those tools are democratizing the technology and it is by nature leveling what that playing field looks like. Because those big companies, they don't feel good about it, they don't want to invest in it. It's a risk for them. They think that because they're big and their name is going to get them over the finish line, people aren't buying that as much anymore. And so that is a forcing function on a lot of folks. And small businesses, in my opinion, are ahead of the large ones.
[00:44:26] Speaker B: Yeah. And so basically what you're telling everybody is that they, they need to invest in this new tech and understand it. There's no wait and see because if they wait and see, they're going to get run over by the big guys.
[00:44:37] Speaker A: That's right.
[00:44:38] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:44:39] Speaker A: Yeah. Once they get bought out, once, you know, because that's the, that's the trend that we usually see, right, Is that, you know, these, a whole bunch of small businesses, a smaller companies are way ahead. And then you read the next day that for $9 billion they got bought by Google or somebody like that. Right. And, and that's the, that's the thing that usually will happen because the big guys recognize they cannot move as fast and so they'll just buy their way into the market space.
[00:45:05] Speaker B: Makes sense. Yeah. I mean, that's the perfect thing. I'd love to be bought by somebody for $9 billion, but I do, you know, so, you know, give me a simple innovation that made a huge difference for small businesses. In your technology.
[00:45:24] Speaker A: Well, I would say it's really around the customer relationship because we are building AI cognitive agents that you can replicate what your customer is, what they're buying, what their habits are. And then you can start to either develop products that are specifically shaped for them, or you can create new technologies that go along with your current tech stack that will elevate what their experience is. And so either you want to give them more or you want to make them feel better. Those are the two simplest ways to think about how you can use AI or really any technology to improve your, your standing. And if you're using it for one of those two, you know, capabilities, you can't go wrong. Because elevating a customer experience is really fundamentally something that everybody is striving to do. And most people are, you know, they're just using it the wrong way and it's ticking people off. And so thinking about your customer first is always going to be the best way. And then layering a simple technology on top of that, that's a smart thing. To do.
[00:46:34] Speaker B: Yeah. So, you know, keeping the theme of the smaller business, you know, how do you know, how can you tell when you're a smaller business when tech is helping or hurting your business?
[00:46:47] Speaker A: Well, I think, I think there are a couple of easy ways to do that and you can do that without getting yourself into deep, deep trouble. The first one is always start small.
You know, always start with your customer. If you are releasing a new technology, get one or two customers or, you know, you know, we call them mega customers, right? And you know, beta testers, mega customers. Somebody that you trust that will give you an honest answer and they will tell you, I'm willing to participate in something like that and I want to help.
That's the best place to go because you're not rolling it out to everybody. You're not investing a tremendous amount of money to do something like that. It is a small focus pilot with a small focus group of your customers that you will get feedback from.
If they tell you it's awful, I don't want to use it ever again and you don't listen to them, that's on you. That's not on the technology. That's on you. So that's, that's the easiest way to think about it.
[00:47:50] Speaker B: Well, I mean, that's excellent, excellent advice, you know, because again, most companies are small companies and they're having to come out either coming out of school and they're going to be going into this kind of thing and they've been learning it in college and they've been learning it in tech school. So now this is what they're going to be doing. So listen, Dr. Alan Badot, thank you again for being with us today.
Again, where can viewers find more of your work and get in touch with you?
[00:48:18] Speaker A: They can go to my website, Alanbadeau AI or they can watch, you know, my AI Today TV show on Now Media on Wednesdays at 4pm Central Time. You know, I enjoyed the discussion. It was great. Thank you.
[00:48:34] Speaker B: Well, it's been awesome, man. I'll tell you what, it's really cool to learn new stuff and even for guys my age, it's absolutely amazing to hear it all.
That's all for today's episode of Ever Changing Technology. We hope you leave feeling informed, empowered and ready to face the future no matter how fast it moves. And thanks to Dr. Alan Badot for his wisdom and to you, our viewers, for joining us. Until next time, keep asking questions, stay curious and never stop evolving.
