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The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

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Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#61
post #11

I'm probably in the minority, but I do not want a "connection" with a business. I want transactional interactions that actually work. That is something that AI is not giving us today. By design. Companies are not switching to AI customer service because it's better or cheaper for the same service. They are choosing to replace customer service with AI chat bots that simulate the customer service experience without act…

This is the difference between the people on this site broadly and everyone else broadly.

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#62

For many businesses, AI is a mechanism to try to keep costs lower because the value of money is decreasing more and more. So if we don't implement AI and the business can't cut costs elsewhere? what's going to happen? There's going to be demand destruction and a potential lower quality of life.

As I see it there's are two directions with AI

   1) Cut the bottom line
   2) Grow the topline
Most firms have a backlog of features and design debt that AI can help address.

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#63
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'm probably in the minority, but I do not want a "connection" with a business. I want transactional interactions that actually work. Every time a business tries to make a "connection" its really just an avenue to exploit or manipulate me. I've never had them making a connection for my benefit (i.e. take a hit to their bottom line). I'm not asking for altruism but I am asking for them to drop the pretense and quit…

You remind me of a hotel stay in Asia I had. After 10 minutes in the room, I get a WhatsApp message: "Welcome Mr. netsharc. How do you find the room?" (it was more verbose than this). It's from a business account which is the hotel (it's part of an international chain). I wanted to reply "Fine, but I don't want to talk to a bot. Leave me the hell alone." but thought it would upset the person on the other side since t…

> All the businesses asking for a rating after I interacted with them also piss me off.

Singapore Airlines automatically emails passengers after a flight asking for a Net Promoter Score rating [1].

I have a feeling those ratings are mostly unseen, and cabin crew have chimed in that those ratings are unlikely to affect their promotions in any way.

What does help with their career is qualitative feedback written in through their feedback form.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Net_promoter_score

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#64
post #11

I'm probably in the minority, but I do not want a "connection" with a business. I want transactional interactions that actually work. That is something that AI is not giving us today. By design. Companies are not switching to AI customer service because it's better or cheaper for the same service. They are choosing to replace customer service with AI chat bots that simulate the customer service experience without act…

Me neither. I just want a business to get my stuff done in a standard way. Clear pricing upfront and no haggling. No surprise. If I hire someone to take care my yard, then take care of the yard. The price is reasonable. The plants thrive. The lawn is green. The irrigation system just works and does not leak. Connection, what connection?

Well, there's this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gn2933vMylY

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#65
post #11

I'm probably in the minority, but I do not want a "connection" with a business. I want transactional interactions that actually work. That is something that AI is not giving us today. By design. Companies are not switching to AI customer service because it's better or cheaper for the same service. They are choosing to replace customer service with AI chat bots that simulate the customer service experience without act…

Definitely! One exemple is Grab, in all Southeast Asia: what people like is that the app is fluid, and will get you from A to B. There is no marketing like Uber did sometimes of like: "personal service, free water bottle", and it's still killing it. Of course, I personally always enjoy a chat with the driver, but many people I know prefer actually not talking.

I choose Grab mainly because I always have installed for GrabPay payments. Sometimes I use Gojek (often unloaded because my phone doesn't have much storage) because it's cheaper.

I avoid first-party taxi apps because they're shit and do dumb stuff like charge a 10% surcharge for credit card payments. They could get away with it 20 years ago, but I'm so glad Uber, Grab, and all the others are eating their lunch.

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#66
post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel like the author wrote like the full plan/ substance himself, and gave to an AI the formatting. It's quite fine for me so actually, as long as the substance make sense/is logical.

What about the formatting seems indicative of AI generation? It just looks like normal long-form writing to me.

I can only speak for myself here, but if I feel like I've read a whole paragraph that should have been half a sentence, that's my signal there's possibly AI generated content in there

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I normally have conversation with opus - And I enjoy it. Maybe I am getting fine-tuned.

I have definitely noticed other people using LLM-choice words, myself included, more frequently. It's a strange phenomenon to witness. Obviously the models got them from us first so there must've been some popularity there prior, but the boost is clear. Blast radius, load-bearing, shape, and so on. Or maybe they were always there and my confirmation bias is in high gear.

One I've started noticing is the "quotation marks around a phrase awkwardly trying to bundle a concept" thing. Like all LLM cliches it's something that has been used in writing for a long time, but I've seen it so much more recently. I think lots of people have picked this up from seeing LLMs use it. But like you said, who knows.

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#68
post #5

An AI written post talking about the importance of human connection in the age of AI is hilarious.

I always wonder how people can tell. For this particular article, was it the thirty-four occurrences of em dashes with spaces on either side? Something else obvious?

It is the em dashes and the excessive wordiness as well as a lot of "not this, but that".

Eg:

"Not dramatically. Just quietly. " -- This is filler words. Whether it's dramatic or quiet has no relevance to the point they're making.

It also loves threes: "Well-modelled, properly sourced, beautifully visualised to requirements" - again, all irrelevant. The point they're making is that it's measuring the wrong thing, not that "beautifully visual things can be incorrect".

"There’s a piece of this conversation that most leaders miss, and it’s the part I care about most" - this hook of "most people miss" it is very common in AI writing.

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#69
post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I feel like the author wrote like the full plan/ substance himself, and gave to an AI the formatting. It's quite fine for me so actually, as long as the substance make sense/is logical.

What about the formatting seems indicative of AI generation? It just looks like normal long-form writing to me.

The intro section reeks of LLM slop:

> He called the restaurant. He was put on hold for thirty minutes. When someone finally answered, they were apologetic but firm — the restaurant was fully booked. No warmth. No conversation. Just a long wait and a closed door.

If that was written by a human, it's embarrassing.

Re: The Competitive Moat That AI Can't Replicate

#70
post #11

I'm probably in the minority, but I do not want a "connection" with a business. I want transactional interactions that actually work. That is something that AI is not giving us today. By design. Companies are not switching to AI customer service because it's better or cheaper for the same service. They are choosing to replace customer service with AI chat bots that simulate the customer service experience without act…

i love connecting with a bookseller at a local independent bookstore. or a bartender. or a server. etc. such a more interesting life if you connect with people at the businesses in your community
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