Checking in with… Andrew Lea
The Head of Artificial Intelligence at PersuasionXP explains how brands can benefit from AI – and why he’d buy a one-way ticket to space.
What exactly is AI, anyway?
Intuitively, most people imagine Artificial Intelligence to be making a computer think like a person, and for some researchers, that is indeed one of our goals. Technically, AI is qualitatively different from ‘ordinary’ computer software, no matter how complex. Because AI learns, or uses techniques that use random numbers, it doesn’t always do the same thing, even for the same input. This makes it hard to write AI regulations. Practically, I think of applied AI as the acquisition, manipulation and exploitation of knowledge.
Where do you foresee AI being within the next 10 years?
I anticipate AI enabling hyper-personalisation. I made this prediction almost a year ago: in nine years’ time when you want to watch a film, you will turn on your entertainment system. It will ask you what sort of film you would like and, based also on films you have previously enjoyed (or disliked), it will write a script and produce a ‘film’. The AI will animate the actors, voice their lines in the language of your choice and compose and play background music built to your taste. It will monitor your enjoyment and adjust the script and music as the film runs. The movie will be a unique view experience, just to you, although you will be able to save it and share it with your friends.
Do you believe we’re witnessing a second Industrial Revolution with the rise of AI?
It is entirely possible. We won’t actually know until we have the benefit of hindsight, but I would anticipate the 2020s being labelled as the decade of that revolution. If the first industrial revolution concerned physical labour, this one concerns mental labour.
How do you see AI influencing human freedom of thought?
I worry that ‘Large AI’ – AI and data analytics so big that only large mega-corporations can afford to train and run it – is made to support or promote the opinions of its owners, and censor opposing views. Chat systems can be imbued with the ‘correct’ bias, just as the ranking of algorithms of social media. The BCS AI conference in Cambridge this December will have a panel session including this very topic.
What impact will AI have on employment within luxury?
Because luxury goods tend to be personal, and sometimes even retro, I would expect the impact to be less on the luxury sector than others. However, all the ancillary functions will be as vulnerable as any other industry.
Is AI ultimately beneficial for society?
AI is a horizontal technology and can be used for both good and ill. There are many good uses, for example in medicine; but especially with the advent of Large AI and the influence that it channels into the hands of the few, not so good uses too. Some people believe, not unreasonably, that AI is an existential threat, which is clearly bad for society, although not necessarily for the planet. Readers may be familiar with the Fermi paradox – because there are so many stars there ought to be other civilisations out there, but where are they? One solution is that the evolution of intelligence is fatal to a planet, which the intelligent-but-unwise inhabitants destroy with nuclear war, environmental pillage, global warming or… AI?
If AI has the potential to both help and harm, how should luxury brands use AI responsibly?
We are not so much in uncharted waters here as waters not charted in living memory, since the first industrial revolution. That revolution made some people rich, others destitute and still others able to acquire useful goods they would never have been able to afford otherwise. In the same way, as with other industries, luxury brands should not take AI opportunities to make profit at human (or indeed animal or environmental) cost. With competitive markets, this will be hard to achieve, and is therefore a task for industry associations.
How do brands balance innovation and authentic human experiences?
An effective ethos would be for brands to make their products compelling, but not addictive, in the way that social media is. People prefer brands that genuinely respect them and their time, and not to do so would attract the same derision as those websites which proudly proclaim ‘we value your privacy’ whilst extracting permission to do the exact opposite. Real respect for customers may ultimately be a more successful business approach. Authenticity is another key facet here. There may well be some ‘tech-lash’ coming, so non-computing, almost retro products may become popular – just as mechanical watches are so appreciated, even though a quartz watch is arguably technically superior.
Are there any destinations still on your bucket list?
Yes – Mars! I’ve always been interested in space exploration, and as I’m now older than I used to be, I’d even accept a one-way ticket to colonise and retire on Mars.
Dead or alive, who would be your ideal travel companion?
My ideal travel companion would be alive. Oh, wait, I see what you are asking. I prefer travelling in a group, ideally an eclectic group from a variety of backgrounds. Probably astronauts or paraglider pilots.
Do you have any travel pet peeves?
I’d like the trains to occasionally run on time; and at a price commensurate with travelling on them rather than, as it appears to be, buying the actual train.
Andrew Lea has been researching and applying Artificial Intelligence in commerce and industry since studying Natural Sciences at Cambridge and Computing at London University in the 80s. He wrote one of the first commercially deployed multi-lingual natural language summarisers as well as AI for Mars landers and fraud detection. He is a member of the BCS “Specialist Group for Artificial Intelligence” committee, and regularly chairs panel discussions at its annual December AI Conference in Cambridge. He is currently Director of Artificial Intelligence at PxP applying AI to marketing, and working with Project Science using AI to make project management more effective. His hobbies include sailing and paragliding.
Continue Reading
Why AI and Blockchain Will Decide the Future of Luxury
Redefining the Luxury Consumer Experience