The Salt Sessions

Transcript 
 

The Salt Sessions - AI Unleashed

0:10
My name is Bev Salt, I'm the founder of Add Salt.

0:13
I'm a marketing consultant.

0:14
For more information about me, head to my website, addsalt.co.uk.

0:20
Today I have a guest joining me called Roy.

0:23
Roy Newey is an AI coach.

0:25
We're going to ask Roy a few questions about artificial intelligence.

0:30
Roy, can you tell us about how you became an AI coach?

0:35
Yes, good to.

0:36
Be here, Bev.

0:37
So I've been in business for many years, had my own businesses and been advising businesses and I've been the chairman of about 150 businesses, helping them accelerate their growth.

0:50
I bought my own business that was turning over £3,000,000 a year and grew it to £180 million a year.

0:57
During that time.

0:58
Lots of different changes and technologies that come along.

1:02
I'm old enough to remember life before the Internet, even life before desktop computers.

1:08
And so whenever something new's come along, I've always taken a quite a curious perspective.

1:14
Is that something that that could help me?

1:16
Is it something that could help the businesses that I'm working with?

1:19
Could it help them advance?

1:20
And so AI came along and I've been having a good look at AI to see how could it assist the businesses that I work with to give them a competitive edge or help them grow more quickly.

1:31
Great.

1:32
OK.

1:33
If we just go back to basics, can you tell us what is AI in business?

1:38
OK, so there's a lot of talk about AI as though it's something that landed sort of eight months ago or a year ago.

1:46
But in reality, AI has been increasingly part of our lives for many years, whether it be through facilitated access in in with websites, whether it be chat bots, whether it be payment systems, whether it be if you apply for finance from a bank, more often than not, it's an AI system that's determining whether or not you meet the criteria your credit score.

2:13
So AI has actually been all around us and increasingly say in the world of medical science where AI is used to diagnose cancers, predict fertility treatments.

2:28
So AI is actually all around us already.

2:32
Really, with the advent of ChatGPT, it sort of bounced into into most people's world where all of a sudden it was something on the desktop, something on the laptop that that you could have a look at and then see what its capabilities were.

2:47
And so I think with ChatGPT, it's opened the scope to many people to be able to understand or start to play with how, how could this actually facilitate advantages for my business?

3:00
Yes, I agree.

3:02
So I think back in January 2023 when ChatGPT came on board, it awoke everybody's interest in AI.

3:12
You know, it has been around since I think the 50s.

3:15
So it's not something new as you say.

3:19
So how can businesses today use AI for their benefits?

3:24
So every business, and This is why I'm enjoying being an an AI coach, is every business needs to look at the sector they're in, look at the business that they're in, look at what the competitors are doing, look at the market environments and the needs of their customers and the pain points that customers have got.

3:42
And then have an awareness of the tools, whatever the tools might be over there.

3:47
And then think about how can we utilise those tools then in my business context to give me an advantage to, to help me move forward.

3:56
Simple things, you know, it's great at automating bog standard procedures and, and all the grunt work of dealing with lots of data and analysis and comparisons.

4:10
Then once you start to get your head around it, once you start to understand how you can utilise the tools.

4:16
I've got an example if I may, of something that I did and I thought that I'd bring along today just to give a demonstration of what it could do.

4:24
So as a business coach, I'm, I'm asked to help lots of businesses with their strategy and planning.

4:29
So with AI this morning, put the details in of a of a client that I'm working with and I asked AI to produce 5 business model alternatives for the client.

4:40
Then I asked it to score them, then asked it to produce a feasibility for the top three scoring business models.

4:46
Then asked it to compare investment returns for each of the three top models.

4:53
I asked it then to produce a risk matrix, draught an organisation, produce an organisation strategy, produce a training plan, Identify a product range.

5:02
Develop a sales plan over one to three years.

5:05
Produce a marketing plan for one to three years.

5:08
Produce a recruitment plan plus adverts.

5:11
Produce the interview questions plus a scoring matrix.

5:14
Develop an induction programme.

5:16
Outline premises requirements.

5:18
Draught me an A planning application for the business.

5:20
Pull up an R&D funding proposal.

5:23
Produce a dashboard for the KPIs.

5:25
Produce a draught KPIs for all the staff.

5:27
Draught the first six board agendas.

5:30
Produce 3 strategy documents.

5:32
Produce the whole of that in French.

5:35
Also for them to produce it all in German just to actually maximise it up to 20 scenarios and actually set it over 4 and 12 years and introduce sustainability into it.

5:46
Now it produced that in 7 minutes.

5:51
Amazing, that's what it does.

5:54
Now will all of that information that it's produced make absolute sense and be purposeful to be sent out as a final draught?

6:04
No, but it's done 99% of the work.

6:08
And so with, with, in our business when we're working with, with companies, all the work that I produce, I always produce a first draught and 2nd draught and 3rd draught.

6:17
So it's, that's produced me in 7 minutes.

6:20
Most probably I, I don't know, six weeks work in 7 minutes.

6:26
So, so now me as the consultant, I'm sitting down to review that documentation after 7 minutes having saved myself six weeks, which is great for the client, reduces their cost, great for the client because it gets them a document tomorrow and releases me from all doing all the dirge work of pulling up all of that data initially.

6:47
Yep, it's great.

6:48
And can I, can I then ask them in the seven minutes that AI's produced all this, how long does then it take you to go through edit it so it's so that you're happy.

7:01
Present it as a solution to your clients.

7:04
So here's a scary bit.

7:06
Here's a scary bit.

7:07
So if you think of when you're at university, when you've been doing your studying for marketing, one of your marketing gurus give me a name, Helen Woodruffe.

7:16
Oh, that's a blast from the past.

7:17
Yeah.

7:18
Helen Woodruffe.

7:19
So I would then say to AI, take those draughts and give me an opinion of that, a 1000-word opinion on that from Helen Woodruffe and AI would produce that in, I don't know, 25 seconds.

7:34
So if I say, could you give me an investment view on this document from Warren Buffett?

7:40
It'll give me an investment review.

7:41
Could you give me 7 hints and tips of how to utilise a digital strategy by asking Steven Bartlett?

7:52
And I'll have that in 20 seconds.

7:54
So now I've got the document, I can then say could you produce the next draught of this and improve it?

8:00
Could you produce the final draught and improvement?

8:03
Could you give me views from Winston Churchill, Rupert Bear, Steven Bartlett, Warren Buffett and Helen Woodruffe as we go?

8:14
Yeah.

8:16
And 65 seconds later, it's all there for me.

8:20
Yes, it is impressive, isn't it?

8:21
And from a business point of view, it's incredible how all the different departments in a business can use it.

8:28
So the sales team can use it for a different purpose or marketing can use it for help with content generation.

8:36
The finance team can use it for things like automations and data and analytics.

8:43
All departments across a business cannot use AI for different purposes and and benefits.

8:51
So that all being good, however, what if I was a small business and I've got various departments and everybody wants like what should I actually prioritise in?

9:01
So in your opinion, Roy, if I was a small business and I had a limited budget, which AI tools would you invest in?

9:10
So I think that the base piece of software that I would invest in would be ChatGPT, because that's going to sit there and allow you educate yourself and to train yourself and to look at options so that you start to get an understanding about how these tools might really help you.

9:32
So, you know, if I was a, if I was a bakery business or a paint manufacturer, then I would sit with ChatGPT and I would start to play about with it.

9:41
And I would ask ChatGPT what, what bits of AI software would be most applicable to our business and it will produce you a list and what would be the top five?

9:49
And what would be the ones that I could if I had a budget of £500 or £50,000 or half, £1,000,000 and it would rank them and it would say what would be the pluses and benefits.

9:59
And ChatGPT will start to educate and tell you.

10:03
But I think the most important thing for businesses to investigate at the moment is training.

10:09
Get, get, get yourself up that, that learning scale.

10:12
Don't be frightened of it.

10:14
It's a bit like, you know, when you, your friends all go to the swimming pool and there's the 10-metre board and, and they're all going up and down and jumping off it.

10:21
And you're like in the pool thinking, I really don't want to jump off the 10-metre board.

10:25
But then eventually you get the courage and you get the 10 metre board and you get to the top and it's like there's a huge breath, you know, jump off and then literally within 15 seconds of jumping off, you're back on the steps because boy, that was fun.

10:40
So don't be frightened of AI.

10:42
Get in there, splash about, have a play with it and start your understanding curve.

10:49
And that's interesting because I, I feel like people are still frightened of AI.

10:55
There's, there's talk around.

10:57
Oh, well, my job still exists in, in 10 years’ time will AI take my job?

11:02
So what is your view on that?

11:05
So there's a really corny phrase, but it is very helpful to, to get your head around it.

11:10
And that is that AI is, is not going to take your job.

11:15
But the person who knows how to use AI is definitely going to take your job.

11:21
They definitely are going to take your job because I'm going to turn up as a business coach and, and, and you're going to turn up as a business coach.

11:29
And the business is going to say to us, can you produce me a document in French and German and Egyptian on five business models with costings and, and premises and applying application R&D.

11:39
And I could say, yeah, I have it for you this afternoon.

11:42
And you're going to say that'll take a bit more this afternoon.

11:45
It'll be six weeks.

11:46
And I'll say, how much would it cost Troy?

11:47
And I'll say, well, an afternoon's work and you'll say six weeks work.

11:52
And so it, it, it's not that I'm any better than Bev.

11:56
It's who's got their head round how to utilise those tools for competitive advantage.

12:04
And so that that's what's going to happen.

12:06
And the business that knows how to use, you'll be fine.

12:08
The businesses that don't know how to use AI will increasingly crash and burn.

12:14
And, and we've, we've see, we're seeing that already.

12:16
You know, if you can look at Blockbuster, Blockbuster's fantastic business, it's everywhere.

12:22
We used to enjoy going to Blockbuster on a Friday and making up videos.

12:26
And then Netflix changes its model from a delivery to a streamer and now it's monopolised and AI is in there because every time I go on Netflix, it brings forward things to watch that I've I've previously liked it, it, it knows how much time I'm spending watching certain documentaries or movies or whatever.

12:46
It brings those forward.

12:47
So I'm getting a better customer experience all the time.

12:51
So AI is all over our life at the moment.

12:54
So your job is not under threat.

12:57
The person who knows how to use AI that they're going to take your job Does that make sense which is great advice yes so your advice would be to work with AI rather than against AI.

13:12
Imagine I said to Bev look Bev you know do you think you could run your marketing agency without the Internet that telephone impossible.

13:20
You know what I mean?

13:22
It's like right.

13:24
So don't be frightened of it get in there and play about with it.

13:27
Enjoy it.

13:28
So it's you know it's very relatively I think chat GPS are like £20 a month get in there and have a play about with it.

13:35
You'll be amazed.

13:37
I have been amazed absolutely amazed yes, likewise.

13:43
And I always say to people also think about what AI can't do as well, rather than all these things AI can do.

13:51
And it's going to take my job because at the end of the day, it's not human and you still need to add that human touch.

13:58
So maybe our role as human is to refine the work that AI has done.

14:05
Our role will change into being a reviewer instead of somebody who starts from scratch.

14:11
So one of the things that's happened to me Bev, is I go to board meetings and, and, and that's my life.

14:17
I go to board meetings, I chair board meetings and board members will ask me a question, what do you think about blah, blah, blah.

14:25
And I'll say, OK, And I'll give them my considered perspective.

14:28
And increasingly now some, some person at the other end of the table will will be going and then I'll finish giving my perspective.

14:35
And the person at the end of the table will say, yeah, he's right.

14:38
That's what ChatGPT says.

14:40
And I go, what are you doing?

14:42
And I say, well, we're just validating your opinion, your professional advice on the basis of the collective wisdom of ChatGPT.

14:49
I'll go, OK, and they say you'll go be getting replaced soon.

14:53
Mr Newy and I go, really?

14:55
I said you want to know what question to ask chit ChatGPT to get the right message out of it, haven't you?

15:02
Yes, yes.

15:04
We're becoming more sophisticated with the AI prompts, getting familiarised with those.

15:08
Roy, we've discussed the many benefits of AI, but are there any pitfalls from deploying AI that businesses should be aware of?

15:18
So, yeah, don't, you know, don't believe everything you read.

15:21
Don't believe everything that ChatGPT produces.

15:25
And there's an awful lot of scare tactics out there in the world.

15:30
So people say, we asked ChatGPT, you know, what was the best hamburger in Manchester?

15:36
And they said a giraffe and say, yeah, great.

15:40
So that day ChatGPT was asked 18 billion questions and somebody managed to get it say giraffe to which was the best burger.

15:49
But you, you do have to validate.

15:52
So I, I get documentation, I, I print it out and I read it and review it and I make alterations and I ask ChatGPT to update the incorrect parts of it that it's made.

16:04
But I would, I suspect it's less than a thousandth of 1% is incorrect, which is really scary.

16:15
You know, I've not met a human being who can be anywhere near as near that accurate.

16:20
And that's why it's being used in cancer diagnostics and infertility treatments because the AI is much, much, much more accurate in we identify oddities in data than the human beings are.

16:34
Yes, it is an incredible technology.

16:37
That's great.

16:38
Well, thanks for your time today, Roy.

16:39
And if anybody had any questions, how can people contact you?

16:45
So if they want to reach out to me, then my e-mail address is roy@roynewey.com.

16:51
Brilliant.

16:51
OK.

16:52
Many thanks for your time, Roy.

16:54
Have a good day.

16:55
Thank you.

16:56
Bye.

16:56
Bye.

 

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