The Day the Universe Changed: AI

2023 was only the beginning. 2024 is going to be amazing.

I'm a huge fan of all of the great and incredible work done by James Burke on the Connections series.

I studied the Connections series in my graduate course also because one of the textbooks that we used was the Connections book by James Burke, it takes you through the arc and the evolution of technology.

We are in an incredibly unique time right now. I've taken the title of this month's newsletter from another video series with James Burke. The series was The Day the Universe Changed. I didn’t see it until I was in graduate school. The series is an even bolder take and walks us through the incredible changes across medicine, printing, science, industry, and more. AI would definitely be in the making if they were to decide it was time for a new episode after the added one for the internet.

The episode I saw on the printing press resonated with me deeply as a person of faith. Raised in the Lutheran Church, I was fascinated by how the printing press coincided with and amplified Martin Luther's Reformation. I had not thought about the technological implications and timing until I saw this presentation.

So, AI…

I want to evoke that sense with this moment in artificial intelligence. Over this year alone, we have seen some truly incredible days. There have been days over the last year where one story did not cover it.

And oddly enough, the pace is accelerating. We saw multiple days this year where you couldn't keep up with all the announcements and the news. I've dedicated a huge portion of my time to following the stories and understanding the concepts and implications of the changes we are going through with artificial intelligence right now.

Many analysts, academics, and others have been very focused on finding where things are headed so that we can help those around us navigate the incredible change that we are going through.

But the truth is, we are just getting started. 2023 was the year of the change beginning.

William Gibson said, “The future is already here. It's just not equally distributed.”

I believe this fully captures the current state of AI today.

The #1 Use Case in 2023

So many use cases are already available for generative artificial intelligence at this very moment. I have had the benefit of starting an entirely new thing this year. In large part, due to the changes coming to us through generative AI, I can create like never before.

Earlier this year, I undertook to create a brand new YouTube channel, and AI was a part of that story because I use AI software to create and edit and make those videos far better than they could possibly be on my own effort without those tools.

And this is the story across many different areas, but they are all about creating.

Editing is not a strong suit of mine, be it video or writing, but AI tools have made it possible to produce far more content than I could have imagined.

When I decided to start this newsletter, honestly, that was intimidating to me because any publication that I've ever created has been done with a team. And I'm now to create a newsletter entirely on my own. It's written only by me and edited with the help of AI (transcription and ideation using AI tools is also an amazing help).

As we step into 2024, we look upon the current capabilities where AI can assist with virtually any creative endeavor that you would like to undertake, whether it's writing, whether it's photography or still art, video creation and editing, music creation, and so on. Editing, music creation, editing and transformation. The arts of poetry and prose are probably the biggest.

But what interested me in generative AI was that I could write a few words and create an image that could take your breath away. And that is an amazing development. It's far more amazing than we give it the right credit for.

If you have ever considered being a creator, I honestly believe there is no better time!

Before we leave 2023…

I want to leave you with 3 important tips in 2023 for getting your hands dirty using AI.

1.) If you want to keep up with the latest AI, download and install Pinokio or at least look at what they offer. It’s completely free, and incredibly fun to click a button and play with the latest research in AI.

2.) Start using Perplexity.ai instead of Google for research. Trust me, this is better. (if you’re still unsure, check out my latest YouTube Video showing how I use it)

3.) Have a spoken conversation with ChatGPT. It’s also completely free. Just download the app (iPhone or Android) and use the headphone button to talk to it. You can do this alone, but it takes the chat experience to a new level.

BONUS: The future is already here with open LLMs. If you are a builder, start playing with all the new models using LMStudio. GPT4All still has some unique RAG capabilities, but the speed of access to the new models using LMSTudio is a game-changer.

Looking and Thinking Ahead

Now, there are two ways to see the changes ahead:

• It’s going to be great

• It’s going to be terrible

The future is what we make it. Don’t let someone else tell you the future; create it yourself, and you have control.

And this is where mindset comes in and why the first portion of my online course is about mindset. Because it's all about how you see the world as we step into the next revolution that is headed our way.

I cannot help but draw parallels to the incredible changes over time. Whether you'd like to choose the computer revolution, the information revolution, the industrial revolution, the emergence of machines, or something as far back as the printing press and the dissemination and creation of information like never before.

I think the AI revolution has elements of all of these.

We're looking at 10 years for the full impact to be felt, yet we are at the beginning of this revolution.

One of the parallels that has often been discussed is the evolution of Netscape in 1997 in terms of browsing and searching the Internet and how that became the window to the great World Wide Web.

It's not clear what that window is today, but I think at this moment, the closest we can get is ChatGPT, as it was the one that showed us what was possible. This is a tiny slice. We are still beginning to discover what's possible more and in new ways every day. New and emerging properties are discovered daily.

Looking towards 2024, I'm filled with immense excitement. The future holds opportunities previously unimaginable, marking a significant shift from gloom to groundbreaking prospects. Though this moment might be forgotten in a decade, its impact will shape our future.

As a technology professional over the last decade, work in information technology has been about building teams that can build software and systems.

As I look at what AI can produce right now as a product owner or product manager, having had some specific training and certification about owning products, I'm now imagining a future where I am the product owner and the developer. I am the founder.

It’s no longer out of the question to imagine myself as a SaaS product owner because I know what needs to be built. I can use artificial intelligence to write the source code, run the application, monitor the application, and do all of those incredible DevOps things I've been studying, sharing, and teaching others about for the last decade.

The toolbox has more tools in it than ever before. And instead of finding ourselves in a situation where it is too much for any one person to do, this arc of change with artificial intelligence means that one man can do it.

That doesn't mean I will only be a one-man operation forever, but for now, it means I have some incredible opportunities, and I have to think deeply about what the future might look like.

2024

So, with that in mind, let's look ahead to 2024 and talk about what's possible and what's coming in 2024. My prognostications for the year 2024.

2024 will be the year of building.

We will see far more opportunities for companies to be started to go from nothing to a

revenue-generating product in record time. They may not have billions or millions of users, but we will discover product niches that we could never have imagined. Just as we did in the World Wide Web's early days, job descriptions that we couldn't imagine would be created in the blink of an eye.

In 2024

• An entire movie created and produced (likely not in the theaters, but on a screen near you)

• 3D Object creation becomes mainstream (and works with 3d printers)

• Systems that run systems intended for human control will be completely managed by an AI system that uses a computer instead of a human.

• Unique models will also be the order of the day for solving real problems that general models don’t handle well.

• We'll see an explosion of open-source capabilities.

• Large language models will become ubiquitous across all device types

• You’ll be able to wear an AI watch

• Write with an AI pen

• Use AI headphones (that capture everything audible around you)

• Environmental monitoring accelerates with AI intelligence to predict ways to be more efficient

• You'll be able to create your own repository of information about your data.

• And we will see at least one person create a full-on, high definition, fully informed data set about themselves that you can interact with.

And it will be stunningly good.

The bad news is, if you thought there was disinformation in the past, it’s not likely to improve in the near term.

As we move into election season, past news of election manipulation, ad campaigns, and disinformation will be something entirely different than it has ever been before.

Ad campaigns and disinformation will be something entirely different than they have ever been before. Finding trustworthy sources of video, audio, or even text documentation in 2024 will become difficult and will bring an urgency to solving the authentication question.

Understanding what is authentic and what is synthetic will become a bigger problem, but this will become a priority we work toward solving. Blockchain and cryptography will nab the spotlight to help solve this.

AI MISTAKES IN 2024

In 2024, we will be able to build more systems faster.

And we'll quickly discover that our ability to create leads to more questions about what we should create and why.

And it is for this very reason that I want to share with you my plans for AI mistakes in 2024. In 2024, I intend to grow and expand community engagement, the number of courses I'm offering, and the kinds of available coaching.

I want to work and collaborate with you.

More events. More courses. More community. I’m also going full speed ahead on consulting and coaching. If this is at all interesting to you, let’s talk!

I want to help you understand your ideas so that the time you spend developing those ideas is maximally beneficial to you and those that it will impact.

Our ability to think deeply, dream big, and build anything will become more important.

Because you'll be able to build anything. And it's not about building anything. It's about building the right thing for you and those you serve.

As we close out the year 2023, I also need to share with you that part of my vision for 2024 is not only to provide unique, informative, interesting, and engaging content and education but also to share with you the stories that go along with the information that, as people, we have taken with us for thousands of years.

I want to put a renewed focus on the sacred information that has been handed down for centuries so that we can all understand the magnitude of that information and what it means for us as human beings.

I want to cover the things that you find interesting as well. So, if you have thoughts about what you'd like to learn, I'd love to hear from you.

I read every comment about this newsletter. Just hit the reply button. It comes directly to me. Let's have a conversation. If you're in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, I'd love to have a chance to get together with you and explore what we might be able to work on together. I’m holding another in-person event on January 9th.

Whether that's an as-yet-undetermined podcast, building a Software as a Service application, creating a consultancy, or building a company that serves the needs of businesses and people worldwide.

There are so many opportunities for us to pursue today. I'd like to know what you're interested in.

I want to serve you and help you to solve the problems. It is through solving problems and helping each other that the future exists.

Because we can create like never before, solve problems like never before, and, in this moment, celebrate like never before.

Let’s make 2024 a year to look back up with awe, wonder, gratitude, and love.

Thanks, and Happy New Year!

For those of you who have subscribed to the newsletter, I sincerely thank you for signing up and reading these words that I share with you.

Thanks for being here and being a part of the story.

And here's to 2024 and the year ahead. Go make some incredible MISTAKES in 2024.