Tag: Mental Models

  • Maybe we do need nutrition labels on software

    Maybe we do need nutrition labels on software

    Back in November 2023 I posited the idea of using nutrition labels for generative AI products. It wasn’t intended to be an in-depth exploration, but rather the beginnings of a mental model. The idea was to reframe these large language models (LLMs) as being neither all good nor all bad, but rather to take a…

  • Generative, Personal, but not Artificial

    Generative, Personal, but not Artificial

    Why is Apple so allergic to the term “AI”? Yesterday’s WWDC conference was split between new OS updates and the big Apple Intelligence announcement. Just like all these articles pointed out back at WWDC 2023, once again never said “artificial intelligence” or “AI” once. But this time, they did say “intelligence”… a lot! Besides Apple…

  • Looking the other direction to learn more deeply

    Looking the other direction to learn more deeply

    Have you ever noticed that in The Great Wave off Kanagawa print by Hokusai has more than 20 people in it? I certainly didn’t and the clip below from the excellent BBC series, The Art of Japanese Life, gave me a whole new appreciation for this picture. Watch starting at 36:17 to see the specific…

  • Focus on how you work with AI, not what it answers

    Focus on how you work with AI, not what it answers

    90% of the value I derive from ChatGPT comes from thinking about my prompt. In forcing myself to think out loud and give instructions to a responsive system, it gives me clarity. The response from ChatGPT almost becomes irrelevant. This doesn’t work as effectively if I were to write into an empty notepad. That’s because…

  • Intellectual Nutrition Labels for Generative AI Products

    Intellectual Nutrition Labels for Generative AI Products

    If a generative AI had a nutrition label that said “100 brain calories per ChatGPT response”, would that change how you use it? Nutrition could serve as a metaphor to understand why taking a tempered approach with generative AI might be important for our intellectual health. For starters, not all calories are created equal. 100…