2024 in the rear view
As we bid farewell to another year, dear reader, it's time to reflect on what excitement or ridiculousnessness 2024 brought us.
It was another year full of stories: people started caring about AI’s feelings, regulators targeted Apple and Google and new tech products like the Cybercab were revealed.
I covered some of the major headlines, but I also looked at trends that, in my opinion, are worth watching, even if the media hadn’t found them important.
Without further ado, let’s review the top recurrent patterns from 2024.
People anthropomorphize AI — to laughable effect
If 2023 was about AI adoption, 2024 was the year of AI anthropomorphization.
It was marked by a series of events that showcased an exaggerated tendency to attribute human-like qualities to artificial intelligence systems.
The recurrent pattern throughout this year in AI has been what I'd term'excessive personification'and 'misplaced empathy.'
Perhaps the most stark example was in July when Lattice, the $3-billion HR software company,declared they were making historyby becoming the first company ‘to lead in the responsible employment of AI “digital workers” by creating a digital employee record to govern them with transparency and accountability.’
Lattice became a joke, and the company backed off on that statement.
But it didn’t stop there. In a twist that would make the author of Frankenstein proud, VC investor firm NFX declared the importance of‘Software with a Soul’— products 'where “humanness” is the core value proposition.’
As I recalled in September, there seems to be a need to inject humanity into places where it isn’t there.
‘First, we started talking about ‘smart’ devices. Then we moved to artificial intelligence. Then came the almost imminent arrival of artificial general intelligence, which Wikipedia warns us is 'not to be confused with generative artificial intelligence’ or ‘artificial superintelligence.’ The people at NFX moved the needle again. The Software with a Soul post now joins the pantheon of human lunacy.’
Finally, as a cherry on top, Anthropic announced it was hiring an AI welfare researcher. It’s a peculiar job that advocates for the rights of beings that don't exist.
Will it become a standard procedure in workplaces to do wellness checks on your toaster?As I mentioned a few weeks ago,‘I can't wait for the day when we will need government permission to unplug a PC.’
Regulation without sound strategy is doomed to failure
Regulation alone seldom guarantees innovation or fair competition; often, it depends on the chosen approach and implementation.
This year, several headlines highlighted the problems of flawed regulations, underscoring the importance of sound strategy in governing the technology sector.
In March, the DoJ decided Apple would be on the naughty list. It concluded the company was engaged in anticompetitive behaviour.
However, its case was filled with logical inconsistencies.
I pointed out one of those arguments was nonsensical.Here’s one example I explored.
‘Apple has been hugely successful but it didn't follow a government-mandated process by lowering prices to help its competitors to better compete.’
Yes, the role of the government is to create rules for an even playing field, but my view is that companies often don’t need help from the government to collapse:
‘Any company from the past which at that time was so big that could be labeled as monopoly, eventually disintegrated under its own weight or was taken over by competition which came from the left field.’
That same month, the EU, ever the overachiever, unleashed its AI Act upon the world – a bureaucratic orgy that left even the most seasoned lawyers reaching for the aspirin.
The purpose of the act was to ensure safety and compliance with fundamental rights, while boosting innovation.
But it’s hard to do this whenthere is no definition of AIin the AI Act. #Awkward.
Not to be outdone, the US DoJ decided it also wanted to create its own government stimulus program. How?
It labelled Google a monopoly. But now what? Do you break up Google? Force people to use Bing?
I arguedthis would lead nowhere: ‘All the big companies can't change because their business model doesn't allow them. If you punish them with fines, it will become a cost of doing business.’
The case will likely be appealed and it will take years for a resolution. Whatever the outcome, it will be keeping lawyers and bureaucrats employed for a long time.
Self-driving cars: the ‘unicorn’ of the tech world
Yes, I am calling self-driving cars unicorns. But that’s because they remain a myth. A fantasy.
Another year has passed, and the promise of these vehicles continues to be broken.
The biggest announcement this year wasthe Cybercab. But Tesla also pushed back its release date to 2027. Previously, they promised robotaxis in 2022, with deployment in 2024.
But this isn’t the first time Tesla has pushed back the date on self-driving cars.
As I reminded you, dear reader,Elon Musk has been ‘promising it since 2013, and the first self-driving Tesla was supposed to beon the road in 2018, and then every year ever after.’
But while Tesla isn’t tired of breaking its promises, other companies are.
GMannounced it would stop the developmentof its self-driving car, andApple canceled its own autonomous vehicle,Project Titan.
Running out of ideas? Add troublesome AI features
In 2024, the tech industry introduced a few intriguing AI products.
A consistent theme, however, was that they were solutions looking for problems.
Microsoft led the charge by introducing Recall, an AI feature that takes screenshots of everything you do on your computer. Because apparently, what the world really needs is a digital voyeur.
What was the reason for creating this?
I argued it was the declining sales of PCs.
Sales for those computers dropped by about 100 million between 2021 and 2023.
‘PC and chips manufacturers are pushing Microsoft hard to do something. And while Microsoft is basking in the double digit growth of its cloud business, its PC business needs a jump start.’
But that wasn’t enough. On top of violating their customers’ privacy, they decided to make life as miserable as possible for IT people around the world.
How?
Microsoft said it will be releasing Copilot Studio so anybody at a company can have their own AI helpers.
To help kickstart the process, it included 10 autonomous agents within Microsoft Dynamics365 to help with sales, services, finance and supply chain management.
You might say, ‘I could use 10 AI agents to help me out at work.’
Yes, it may help out for a little while. But over time it will cause system failures that will make every IT person pull their hair out.
I explained this in December:‘The challenge is that the moment anyone creates an automated task, the output will become an input for someone else’s task, and their output will become...and so on.
A small change, aka crash, in the first task will have unforeseen implications throughout the whole organization.’
Companies have been racing all year to add more AI features to all their products. However, there was still something missing. Profit.
As I wrote,it always comes down to money. Flashy technology is nice, but without strategy, it is nothing.
Here’s to hoping that you find the right strategy in 2025, and that it brings you much success.
May that be your recurrent pattern. See you in the new year.