"No, you're not going to lose your job to AI. You're going to lose your job to somebody who knows how to use AI."

-Andy Freed, CEO, Virtual, Inc

In this episode of 5 Minutes with Andy, join host Andy Freed, CEO of Virtual Inc., as he delves into the rapidly evolving world of artificial intelligence (AI) and its game-changing impact on the workplace.

Andy discusses:

• Why embracing AI is essential for staying competitive in your career.
• How AI compares to past technological revolutions.
• Practical tips for integrating AI into your daily routine, with just 10 minutes a day (including a bonus assignment).

Whether you're just beginning your AI journey or are already well-versed, this episode offers valuable insights into how AI can boost your productivity and sharpen your decision-making. Tune in to discover why AI isn't just an option for today’s business professionals—it's a necessity.

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Andy Freed (00:12 - 04:13)

Hi, and welcome to Five Minutes with Andy. My name is Andy Freed. I'm the CEO of Virtual Incorporated. At Virtual, we help organizations of all different sizes make their mark on the world. And for 25 years, we've been helping standards bodies, consortia, and associations as they help make an impact. Along the way, we've learned some lessons. And today, we're going to take five minutes to talk about some of those lessons on AI, artificial intelligence. Man, it is everywhere. And right now, you can't swing a dead cat in the tech community without hitting somebody talking about AI. And they're talking about it in all different directions. They're talking about the positives, they're talking about the negatives, and they're talking about the fears and worries. What I will say is summed up in one little aphorism.

No, you're not going to lose your job to AI. You're going to lose your job to somebody who knows how to use AI. AI is no different than every other technology that has come to pass over the last 30 years of my career. You didn't lose your job to the internet. You lost your job to people that understood how to use the internet. My father retired when they put a computer on his desk in 1991 because he didn't want to use it. Now, the reality is that using a computer became something that was essential in every job. Same thing goes for AI.

If you're going to go about your job by ignoring this technology and ignoring the tremendous potential that it has, you're going to find it just more difficult to work efficiently. AI has the ability to do things that no person can with greater speed and not quite greater accuracy yet, but it's getting there. So, think about how you can use it for different things. And as is the case with every technology, play with it a bit to learn about it.

When the internet first came out, I spent hours of every day just surfing the web and looking at things. This was before Google; it was even before Yahoo. It was when there were different directories out there to try to find websites. And with time, people found the right applications. And with time, people found that businesses had an essential need to use the internet. I remember the first job I took after the internet's launched, I asked for an email address and our IT director said, well, we don't do fads here and the internet is a fad. Let's not make that same mistake with AI. Let's remember that this is something which the genie is not gonna go back in the bottle. It's here to stay.

So, what do I recommend? Take a look at different things. Spend 10 minutes of everyday looking at ChatGPT, looking at Microsoft Copilot, looking at Apple's new version of it, Apple Intelligence, when it hits the market, this fall. Try different things. Try analyzing data. Try taking a look at asking some questions. Try writing and seeing if it helps you get over the fear of the blank page by giving you a start on writing something. Try the different things that AI has been capable of and see where it can fit for your business. But the reality is that just as the Luddites found they couldn't stop progress of industrialization; we're going to find that we can't put this genie back in the bottle. AI is here to stay. Organizations are going to use it. Individuals are going to use it. And you ignore it, frankly, at your own peril.

So, with the minutes remaining of our five minutes, my suggestion is to do this. I'm gonna give you a bonus. Take one minute, go to ChatGPT and ask it to write a podcast on the impact of AI on business. See if it does any better than this. I bet it will, and that's why you can't ignore it. Thanks for joining me.

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