Flourishing with AI

Which side of the GenAI revolution do you want to be on – the ranks of the displaced or among those who reap the benefit of this incredible technology? 

AI is already disrupting our world in ways we could not have imagined even just a couple of years ago. And it will continue to disrupt in even more ways that most of us still cannot imagine even given all we know today. But what we do know is that both the speed and the scale of disruption that AI is unleashing is unprecedented and exponential. Indeed, not since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution has technological development impacted more of the world’s population more quickly than GenAI. Think about that - its impact exceeds that of the advent of the world-wide-web, mobile, cloud and more. Because it’s built on top of all of those innovations that took decades to permeate the world, enabling AI to move things forward more quickly than ever. 

We have a simple thesis. We believe that AI, along with climate change, is the single biggest change in our lifetime. No doubt it will throw up great challenges but importantly, it also has the potential to offer immense opportunities. But, if you want to be on the winning side, you must be prepared to seize the moment.

Unfortunately, like with climate change, with AI too, most people tend to underestimate both the magnitude and the speed with which it is moving. And given how furiously AI is moving, and the varied and contrarian views on it, most professionals have a limited and confused understanding of AI & its impact, especially on their jobs and careers. 

We have a tricky situation on hand. On one side are many professionals who, cocooned in complacency, think that AI is not going to touch them anytime soon. They think they are safe and so they don’t feel the need to prepare themselves for the coming disruption. On the other hand, conflicting views from industry stalwarts and the constant barrage of attention-grabbing doomsday scenarios in the media is instilling fear even in the brave-hearted. Both sets of professionals have the same challenge: A huge lack of understanding about what AI can and cannot do, how much of the human role it can replace at the workplace, what new opportunities will it create, and in what time frame.

We believe that AI, like the Industrial Revolution, has the potential to both displace tens of millions from their existing jobs and at the same time create jobs for many tens of millions more. But unlike earlier technologies, that mainly impacted physical and manual labor, for the very first time, technology, by way of AI, is impacting knowledge workers & high-skilled, white-collar jobs, at scale. And the coming age of affordable AI-powered learning robots will start to impact those operating in the physical domain as well. 

Interestingly, while some jobs might simply get replaced by AI because it is better and/or cheaper at these jobs than humans, many professionals might lose their jobs to other professionals who have learnt to use AI or have learnt to use their creativity or human interaction skills in ways that AI cannot match. Whatever be the impact, one thing is sure: AI will impact each and every job. In order to be on the winning side of AI, professionals must first break through all the clutter and the noise surrounding AI, understand both the risks and the enormous opportunities it can present, and then leverage it to their advantage.

This book is written specially for white-collar professionals to help them make sense of the AI world and its impact on their careers. Rich with practical perspectives, real-world anecdotes, and actionable take aways, it will be a strategic handbook for knowledge professionals to ready themselves and their jobs to embrace and use AI. It will empower them to not only survive but thrive in the new AI-driven world. It will also equip them to prepare for a future which is as yet unknown.

The book will break through all the noise and clutter surrounding AI and present a balanced, clear and coherent context of the AI world. It will explain in simple, layman terms, what all AI can and cannot do, and the threats, opportunities, and potential it offers. It will help readers assess how much of a risk they are at in their current roles from AI and how it will impact their careers in the coming years. It will showcase the varied opportunities that AI is already throwing up and how businesses, societies and individuals are using AI at present. This, in turn, will help open their minds and imagination to the varieties of ways in which AI can be used and enable them to envision and craft a whole new world of possibilities and opportunities for themselves. Our aim is to get our readers thinking on how they too can harness the enormous potential of AI.

Further, the book will identify key attributes that individuals must necessarily possess to advance their careers in an AI world, and give practical and actionable takeaways on how they can develop these specific attributes. The book will also identify practical and valuable resources such as tools that readers can use to enhance their own productivity and creativity, courses to help develop their knowledge on AI, and business leaders and tech experts whose views on the AI can provide value on an ongoing basis. Most importantly, in this dance between technology and humans, the book will explain what it means to be human in an increasing tech world and why ‘being human’ is more critical now than ever before.

For those who might question the need for adding yet another book to the already existing confusion around AI, we have a simple ask.  Our aim is to slice through the chatter and present what we believe is a balanced narrative about AI so that the readers can make informed decisions and choices. You don’t need to necessarily agree with what we are saying, but we urge you to delve deep into the various ideas presented in the book, think for yourselves and then make up your own mind about what AI could mean for you as an individual and how you can make it count for you.

And last, but not least, this book is being written in partnership with an AI chatbot we have developed, one that can discuss topics with future readers, hear their hope and fears, and guide the authors on what topics are most in need of research and discussion. Purchasers of the book will be given full access to the “AI Version” of the book, which will draw on not only the resources of the authors but also on the writings of other experts in the field and the knowledge of state-of-the-art tools that will bring power of AI to you. We believe the best way to understand and appreciate AI is to experience it. And we hope that our book in the form of a conversational AI chatbot is your window to this new and exciting world of AI.