The stone age of AI
Despite all the talk of generative AI disrupting the world, the technology has failed to significantly transform white-collar jobs. Workers are experimenting with chatbots for activities like email drafting, and businesses are doing numerous experiments, but office work has yet to experience a big AI overhaul.
Chatbots and their limitations
That could be because we haven't given chatbots like Google's Gemini and OpenAI's ChatGPT the proper capabilities yet; they're typically limited to taking in and spitting out text via a chat interface.
Things may become more fascinating in commercial settings when AI businesses begin to deploy so-called "AI agents," which may perform actions by running other software on a computer or over the internet.
Tool use for AI
Anthropic, a rival of OpenAI, unveiled a big new product today that seeks to establish the notion that tool use is required for AI's next jump in usefulness. The business is allowing developers to instruct its chatbot Claude to use external services and software to complete more valuable tasks.
Claude can, for example, use a calculator to solve math problems that vex big language models; be asked to visit a database storing customer information; or be forced to use other programs on a user's computer when it would be beneficial.
Anthropic has been assisting various companies in developing Claude-based aides for their employees. For example, the online tutoring business Study Fetch has created a means for Claude to leverage various platform tools to customize the user interface and syllabus content displayed to students.
Other businesses are also joining the AI Stone Age. At its I/O developer conference earlier this month, Google showed off a few prototype AI agents, among other new AI features. One of the agents was created to handle online shopping returns by searching for the receipt in the customer's Gmail account, completing the return form, and scheduling a package pickup.
Challenges and caution
- While tool use is exciting, it comes with challenges. Language models, including large ones, don’t always understand context perfectly.
- Ensuring that AI agents behave correctly and interpret user requests accurately remains a hurdle.
- Companies are cautiously exploring these capabilities, aware of the potential pitfalls.
The Next Leap
The Stone Age of chatbots represents a significant leap forward. Here’s what we can expect:
Action-oriented chatbots
- Chatbots that can interact with external services will be more useful. Imagine a chatbot that books flights, schedules meetings, or orders groceries—all through seamless interactions.
- These chatbots won’t be limited to answering questions; they’ll take action based on user requests.
Enhanced Productivity
- As chatbots gain tool-using abilities, productivity will soar. Imagine a virtual assistant that not only schedules your day but also handles routine tasks.
- Businesses can benefit from AI agents that automate repetitive processes, freeing up human resources for more strategic work.
