Over the last few weeks, several organizations have hedged their bets on AI. Apple and the Mozilla Foundation are at the forefront of those announcements. Yet, in both cases, the organizations are betting on technology at the peak of its hype cycle. Yet, is betting on AI a winning strategy, or should boards have intervened before the organizations changed their purpose to building AI-enabled products? Let’s find out by looking at the organization’s missions, consumer demand, and bottom line associated with the change to being an AI organization.
Betting On Change: Corporate Missions
Most people will remember Apple’s old motto, “Think Different.” Although the slogan was retired in 2002, we still associate it with Apple. It also plays nicely into the everyday understanding of Apple as a disruptor and innovator. The iPhone disrupted the way carriers sold phones to consumers. The iPod disrupted how we purchased music. The Mac changed the way we utilized computers. In none of these cases were the products truly technical innovations, as they were marketing successes and a change in consumer habits. This habit change is the core of Apple’s corporate mission.
Similarly, the Mozilla Foundation has its stated purpose: “It is Mozilla’s duty to ensure the internet remains a force for good.” Their primary means of reaching this goal is supporting open-source software, like the Firefox web browser.
Whether “thinking different” or being a force for good, consumers have strong associations between the brands, the products, and the trust given to either of them. When consumers buy an Apple product, they expect it to be better for their lives than a competitor’s. They expect it to make their lives easier or more enjoyable. After all, that is the promise the brand puts behind it.
Consumer Demand
Yet, it isn’t only consumers who bet on a brand. Organizations are likewise gambling that their brands and associated products inspire prospective customers to buy products repeatedly. While innovative brands can encourage the demand for a product in a new following, it is more likely for a brand to bring forward an unknown need. Before the iTunes/iPod combination, most people did not consider only buying their favorite song. You always had to buy the whole album, convert the music you wanted to MP3, and then load it onto your MP3 player. The process was technically complicated, tedious, and more expensive than we liked to admit.
The same will hold for AI. If there is a need, customers will buy it. Thus, we see a tremendous adoption of AI transcription tools and meeting assistance. Some meetings have as many AI assistants present as there are humans. In contrast, many other AI implementations are more a gimmick than a solution. For example, the days when ChatGPT sets weekly user records are long over. Likewise, Google’s AI overview is receiving increasing criticism for its inaccuracy.
There is no reason to believe that Mozilla and Apple can produce better AI products. Both could create a hype cycle among their most enthusiastic followers. Yet, like the Apple Pencil before it, they might assemble a product with little value and much regulatory scrutiny.
Betting Against Your Vision
The most significant problem for Mozilla, Apple, and many other organizations betting on AI is that the technology itself isn’t part of their vision of the future. Putting AI into the iPhone will unlikely disrupt any industry or make our lives easier. AI in Firefox won’t grow its adoption and increase the democratization of technology. At best, these tools will bypass us unused and unnoticed. At worst, they will be significant money pits.
Ensuring that Firefox is the fastest and most user-friendly browser would increase adoption and provide a significant differentiator between the browser and its competitors. With the Chromium engine reaching adoption numbers not seen since the days of Internet Explorer, we need alternative browser engines to ensure an open internet. We don’t need AI for that.
Back to the Basics
AI presents a significant technological change. Yet, for many companies, technology is nothing but a tool. Outside the technology sector, boards and management have already backtracked from the claim that every company is an AI company. We have to reach the same state within tech. We must get our companies back to betting on our missions instead of following the latest hype cycle.