AI's Interface Evolution: From Clicks to Conversations ``
AI's Interface Evolution: From Clicks to Conversations
Over the past few months, it’s been hard to miss the buzz surrounding Generative AI.
Yet, amidst all this chatter, there's a crucial aspect that seems to be overlooked > > >
The dramatic way AI-enabled tech is poised to change how we interact (or interface, in tech speak) with the digital world.
This impending shift carries significant implications that business leaders would be remiss to ignore. Anticipating and embracing them is paramount for staying ahead in an increasingly AI-driven landscape. So this month, I’m diving in!
The genesis:
The digital landscape is entering a new era of interaction, where conversations with intelligent agents are beginning to replace the traditional behaviors of browsing and clicking. In this new era, our tech tools have the potential to shift from dispassionate middlemen to intelligent, informed, even empathetic agents.
Over the next few years, our interactions with “the internet” will likely look significantly different than they do today, including a digital landscape punctuated by AI conversations, rather than apps and browsers.
Savvy leaders should start embracing those changes now and planning to meet consumers (and employees) where they are headed.
I believe a key question will be, “What will your brand/companies act like, and sound like, in an AI-mediated world?”
Not sure yet about that answer? Let’s go deeper.
Tech Interfaces: Why Do We Care?
In the ever-evolving landscape of technology, interfaces have always played a key role in shaping our experience. For business leaders, they are (increasingly) the primary point of interaction between your customers and your company’s products and services.
From the early days of command-line interfaces to the graphical user interfaces (GUIs) that revolutionized personal computing,
we've witnessed a steady progression toward more intuitive and seamless ways of engaging with digital systems.
The invention of the world wide web transformed how we access and share information.
Then, the advent of the smartphone and apps brought the internet to our fingertips.
Now, AI is on the verge of taking the next evolutionary leap – one that will again result in even greater convenience and sophistication for users.
Is your organization anticipating this shift?
But What Exactly Do We Mean by an AI-interface?
In (somewhat) simple terms, it's an interface that leverages machine learning to understand user inputs, anticipate their needs, and deliver personalized experiences.
All in real-time.
You might see words like “AI Agent,” “Chatbot,” or “GPT-Plugin” floating around. These all reference some sort of AI-driven interface.
Think of virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa, or Google Assistant – they're prime examples of first-generation AI interfaces that have already become deeply integrated into our daily lives.
However, the next gen of AI-interfaces will be much more powerful.
These interfaces will be capable of completing sophisticated tasks and transforming the digital paradigm from “search and click” to conversations.
So, Why is AI Emerging as the Next Dominant Interface Paradigm?
Well, for starters, traditional interfaces have their limitations. Apps and websites require users to navigate through predefined menus and commands, often leading to friction and inefficiency.
Let’s take travel as an example.
As recently as this time last year, planning a trip online involved searching and clicking.
A travel shopper needed to spend time searching for ideas, scanning the links and content that the search turned up, sifting out the meaningful information, then building an itinerary, not to mention actually making the reservations – or hiring an assistant or human agent to do all the above.
Fast-forward to today, when the online travel planning process has moved much closer to a dynamic conversation. I can pick a destination, put in a prompt, and then “converse” with an AI system that serves up a curated, personalized travel itinerary.
I noticed recently that Expedia is testing something like this with Project Explorer.
Companies like Auto GPT and Vim GPT are working to develop and scale chatbots that will get things done, such as taking action to accomplish AI-generated recommendations.
Other examples of digital tasks that have shifted from search-and-click to conversation abound.
Grocery Shopping: Instacart’s “Ask Instacart” function helps shoppers convert a recipe into orders from local grocery stores with the click of a button.
Consumer Goods Shopping: Using a Microsoft, Google or Open AI chatbot to almost completely remove the heavy lifting of product research.
Companies who have signed up for ChatBot GPTs include:
AllTrails, the user-generated trail hiking community (one of my favorites—think of it like Waze for hikers).
Design App, Canva, which helps users create voice-to-image designs for social media posts, presentations, logos and more.
And Books GPT, which promises to be “your guide in the world of reading and literature.”
This should give all brand leaders pause.
What does a world look like where every consumer’s interaction with their category is a dynamic conversation, rather than a web search, a click on social media, or a visit to a brick-and-mortar storefront?
An Unrivaled Era of Personalization
One of the key strengths of AI interfaces is their ability to adapt and learn from user behavior.
By constantly analyzing data and patterns, AI systems can get better at predicting preferences and habits, enabling them to deliver increasingly personalized and relevant experiences.
In my travel example, I can ask an AI-enabled travel chatbot not just for “New York itinerary ideas,” but for “New York hotel ideas for a family of 3 traveling in March who enjoys local restaurants and indie bookstores.”
And, the technology can increasingly deliver.
If I’m not pleased with Expedia’s Explorer, I can hop over to Kayak GPT and take another shot at getting a personalized travel itinerary generated in minutes.
But it's not just about personalization.
AI interfaces also have the potential to streamline complex tasks and automate routine processes. Whether it's scheduling appointments, picking the best car or toaster, or controlling smart home devices, AI-powered assistants will increasingly be able to handle a wide range of tasks, saving users considerable time and effort.
For example, check out Zapier, a beta tool that lets you connect a chatbot to your calendar and use it to turn AI-generated suggestions into your own, personal scheduled appointments.
To envision this Zapier tool might work in the real-world, I marveled when I came across New York Times writer Brian Chen’s description of how he used this AI-enabled bot to turn suggestions from a “how to run” self-help book into a set of personalized weekly exercise appointments, which the app plugged directly into his calendar.
OK, So the Future of Digital Interactions is a Conversation. Any Watchouts?
It would be shortsighted to write about the future of AI-interfaces without pointing out that we will certainly hit a few speedbumps along the way.
I read recently about a current downturn in the excitement surrounding generative AI, with some AI-led solutions facing criticism due to embarrassing errors in generated content and concerns about intellectual property infringement.
Further, some companies are finding it difficult to successfully scale their generative AI experiments. However, I don’t think this marks the end of generative AI; rather, it's a typical phase (often described using Gartner’s label, “trough of disillusionment”), where emerging technologies undergo periods of inflated expectations, followed by a period of working out challenges before reaching maturity.
I appreciated Every columnist Evan Armstrong’s assessment that, “While much of this stuff doesn’t currently work perfectly, investors are betting it can. Many assume we are just one or two scientific advancements away in models or tooling to make [AI] agents available at scale.”
In Conclusion…
The era of the AI-led interface is upon us. I believe that in the next few years, smart leaders will be able to leverage the power of artificial intelligence to create interfaces that are not only smarter and more intuitive, but also more empathetic and human-centric.
Undoubtedly the low-hanging fruit is Consumer Engagement and Personalization.
But I see opportunities for AI-driven interfaces to shape innovations in other parts of the enterprise as well, including: predictive analytics for supply chain optimization, new product development, eCommerce applications, customer support, and even workforce training. So, we shouldn’t limit the scale of the next interface evolution to consumers alone.
To position our companies for sustained growth and success, we have to dream now about what that future will look and sound like, and how we can keep pace.
So, here's to the future of digital interaction – where AI is not just the next interface, but a catalyst for innovation and empowerment. Stay curious, stay informed, and keep exploring!