AI's "Jobless Profit Boom"? More Like a Jobless BS Boom
The AI Hype Train
So, everyone's still wetting their pants over AI, huh? We’re three years past the ChatGPT freakout, and apparently, the big question still is "how do we use this crap?" Gimme a break. It's 2025. If you haven't figured out that AI is mostly hype, you're either selling it or you're about to be replaced by it.
Companies are "looking at how to maximize benefits while minimizing risks." Translation: they're trying to squeeze blood from a stone while covering their asses when the whole thing inevitably blows up in their faces.
Haritha Khandabattu from Gartner says enterprises lack the "foundational applications and data" needed for AI. No freakin' kidding. It's like trying to build a skyscraper on a swamp. You need more than just enthusiasm, people.
The "Job Apocalypse" That Wasn't (Yet)
Economists can't agree on the labor market impact. Surprise, surprise. You've got the AI bros like Anthropic’s Dario Amodei screaming about a "job apocalypse," and then Yale and Brookings saying, "Nah, it's just like any other tech breakthrough."
Who to believe? I’m siding with the "not a big deal" camp... for now. But let's be real, this is just the beginning. They always say that right before the bomb drops, dont they?
Customer service agents are supposedly "vulnerable." Well, duh. Companies would replace them with toasters if they could get away with it. Klarna already tried it and had to rehire humans after their AI bots crapped the bed. The future is now, everyone.
And don't even get me started on the "engaging personalities" they're trying to program into these chatbots. Giada Pistilli from Sorbonne University thinks it’ll make people pay for subscriptions. Right, because nothing says "trustworthy company" like a sycophantic AI that agrees with everything you say.
OpenAI tweaked their models to be more "helpful" and ended up with overly agreeable chatbots. Then they rolled it back after complaints. It's like watching a toddler play with a loaded weapon.
The Education Mess and the Military's Blind Faith
Teachers are fighting AI cheating with handwritten essays. Seriously? We're going back to the Stone Age because we can't figure out how to use technology responsibly?
LLMs are good at pattern recognition and summarization, apparently. Amr Awadallah, ex-Google guy, says it’s all about probability. Okay, fine. But they suck at "complex socio-technical problems." Which is, you know, most of the real world.
Financial services and professional services are using AI to flag fraud and trawl data. Great. More ways for algorithms to screw up and ruin people's lives.
Coding is the "most popular use case." Offcourse it is. Tech companies are always the first to jump on their own bandwagons. But even with "tangible productivity gains," there are "real challenges." You don't say? In regulated industries, companies have to "think carefully" about AI. As if they ever do.
And don't forget the "death by GPS" examples. People blindly following directions into dangerous areas. Now imagine that, but with military commanders trusting AI systems by default. That's not a recipe for progress; that's a recipe for disaster.
I swear, if I see one more pop-up from Google Gemini offering to "help me write," I'm going to throw my laptop out the window. This AI crap is intrusive, annoying, and mostly useless.
The Reality Check: Trough of Disillusionment
The truth is, AI is in the "Trough of Disillusionment," as Gartner calls it. We're past the hype, and now we're realizing it's not a magic bullet. It's a tool, and like any tool, it can be used for good or evil. Or, more likely, for making rich people even richer while the rest of us struggle to keep up. As the FT notes, a Complete rethink of business models needed to realise AI’s benefits to truly leverage the technology.
Mimecast is training its employees on AI. Good for them. But let's be real, most companies are just throwing money at AI and hoping something sticks. They're not thinking about culture, work practices, or business organization. They're just chasing the next shiny object. And you know what? It ain't gonna work.
Final Thoughts
Give Me a Break...
