Analysing AI Through the "Vitamins vs Painkillers" Lens

Today’s Edition

Hey there! Welcome to today's edition, packed with all the hottest news from the world of AI.

• 📖 Today, we're delving into an analysis of AI, considering whether it's a Vitamin or a Painkiller. The actual problem that AI addresses seems to be almost infinitely intricate and broad, making it challenging to define precisely.

• 🖥️ In today’s product section we're featuring Framer's new AI capability that allows you to describe a website, and it will build it in just 30 seconds, looking fantastic. Additionally, we introduce PlayHT, your AI-Powered Voice Generation Platform.

• 👩🏼‍💻 Would you like to have ChatGPT Code Interpreter analyse your spreadsheets? Even simple prompts can yield robust outputs and valuable insights.

• 🎤 Don't miss the inspiring Invest Like the Best Podcast featuring Des Traynor, the founder of Intercom. He discusses the transformative power of AI in business, spotlighting products like their OpenAI-powered bot, Fin.

So grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and let's dive into the fascinating world of AI together. Enjoy!

Jenko

Analysing AI Through the "Vitamins vs Painkillers" Lens

A.I. is the ‘the exact opposite of a solution in search of a problem’

A few years ago, a mentor of mine introduced me to the concept of "Vitamins vs Painkillers" in the context of products, services, and investing. At that time, I had developed a product and was seeking investment from him. Upon analysing what we had created, he categorised it more as a vitamin rather than a painkiller. His investment thesis was centered on investing exclusively in painkillers.

This is not to say that vitamins can't be transformed into significant products; it's just typically more challenging and often requires world-class execution on the marketing and sales side.

After famed investor and Y Combinator founder Paul Graham insightfully articulated something I've been mulling over regarding AI, I decided to revisit the analogy of "Vitamins vs Painkillers" in relation to AI. I've been contemplating the actual problem that AI is solving, and it appears almost infinitely complex and too vast to pinpoint.

”AI is the exact opposite of a solution in search of a problem,” Graham wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “It's the solution to far more problems than its developers even knew existed.”

Firstly let’s look at the "Vitamins vs Painkillers" analogy, which is is often used in the business world to differentiate between two types of products or solutions:

• Vitamins: These are nice-to-have solutions that enhance life or performance but aren't necessary for survival or basic functioning.

• Painkillers: These are must-have solutions that address immediate, pressing problems or "pains."

Applying this lens to AI can provide an enlightening perspective on its role and value in various contexts.

AI as a Vitamin

Viewed as a vitamin, AI can be seen as an enhancing tool. It allows businesses to optimise operations, make more informed decisions, and create new opportunities for growth and innovation. It's not necessarily vital for basic survival but can provide a competitive edge and boost efficiency.

• Optimisation and Efficiency: Through predictive analytics, automation, and personalised marketing, AI supports enhanced productivity and growth.

• Innovation and Exploration: AI opens doors to new methods of problem-solving and can lead to groundbreaking innovations.

AI as a Painkiller

Conversely, AI can also be viewed as a painkiller. In some sectors, it solves critical, immediate problems that might be impossible or highly challenging to address without it. Paul Graham said it well, “A pattern I've noticed in the current YC batch: a large number of domain experts in all kinds of different fields have found ways to use AI to solve problems that people in their fields had long known about, but weren't quite able to solve. AI is turning out to be the missing piece in a large number of important, almost-completed puzzles.”

He shared no examples, but when a user replied that “the supply chain and procurement industry need this badly,” Graham responded, “I met two startups using AI for this just today.”

• Healthcare: AI-powered diagnostics and treatments can save lives and improve patient care.

• Supply Chain Management: AI can alleviate complex logistical issues, reducing costs and time delays.

• Security: In cybersecurity, AI can detect and respond to threats in real time, safeguarding sensitive data and systems.

The dichotomy between vitamins and painkillers is not strictly binary when it comes to AI. It serves as both, depending on the context, needs, and application. Its multifaceted nature allows it to be a tool for enhancement in some scenarios while acting as an essential solution to critical problems in others.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who in 2014 replaced Graham as president of Y Combinator, also weighed in on his venture’s unorthodox approach as a startup.

“OpenAI went against all of the YC advice,” he said during an onstage interview at an event hosted by fintech company Stripe in May. In addition to taking four and a half years to launch a product and being the most capital-intensive startup in Silicon Valley history, he said, “We were building a technology without any idea of who our customers were going to be or what they were going to use it for.”

Today, of course, thanks in large part to the A.I. gold rush that OpenAI kicked off with the launch of ChatGPT late last year, keeping track of all the A.I. startup activity is so difficult that one might reasonably turn to an A.I. chatbot for help. But Graham suggests it isn’t all hype.

“It's not intrinsically a fad or a sign of opportunism that there are suddenly a huge number of startups all doing AI,” he wrote. “There were simply a huge number of almost solvable problems that have now become solvable.”

In the realms of investment and product development, understanding whether AI functions as a vitamin or a painkiller can help in strategic planning and decision-making. It requires a nuanced understanding of the specific problem being addressed and how AI technology can be tailored to meet those needs.

Examining AI through the distinctive perspective of "Vitamins vs Painkillers" provides a profound insight into its function and possibilities, guiding investment and development towards meeting present requirements and foreseeing future prospects. Were Noah to inquire today whether AI is a Vitamin or a Painkiller, my response would be that it’s both. ;)

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