Achieving Great Work: Combining Curiosity, Effort, and Original Thinking in the Early Days of AI

Achieving Great Work: Combining Curiosity, Effort, and Original Thinking in the Early Days of AI

In the pursuit of achieving great work, it is essential to identify what truly excites and interests you. What subjects or ideas do you find yourself constantly drawn to? These are the areas where you should focus your efforts. By aligning your work with your passions and interests, you can tap into a deep well of motivation and drive.

However, it is not enough to merely focus on one area. To create something truly unique and groundbreaking, it is important to explore connections between different fields. Look for opportunities to merge your passions and interests, as this can lead to innovative and unexpected outcomes. Embrace outlier ideas and pursue them, even if they are not initially popular. Trust your expertise and intuition, and don't be afraid to challenge conventional wisdom.

In "You and Your Research," the value of patience and persistence is emphasized. Great work often requires a depth-first search approach, where you stay committed to a problem or idea, even in the face of setbacks or challenges. This level of dedication and perseverance is what sets apart truly remarkable achievements from mediocre ones.

The combination of curiosity, delight, and the desire to do something impressive can drive individuals to work harder and achieve greatness. Setbacks should be embraced as opportunities for growth. Learn from your mistakes and adapt your approach to overcome obstacles. Exposing questions that others can answer or creating ideas that others can build upon are signs of great work.

One way to foster a habit of original thinking is by actively seeking out new ideas and perspectives. Engage in conversations, write about your interests, and ask thought-provoking questions. Seek collaboration with like-minded individuals who challenge and inspire you. Surround yourself with colleagues who offer surprising insights and bring diverse perspectives to the table. This environment of intellectual stimulation will fuel your creativity and push you to think outside the box.

It is important to remember that great work is not just about the end result, but also about the struggle and growth that comes with it. Stay committed, stay curious, and never stop pushing the boundaries of what is possible.

In the early days of AI, it is crucial to recognize the significant advancements and capabilities that have emerged. Rather than viewing LLMs, Transformers, and diffusion models as part of a continuum with past "AI," it is worth considering this as an entirely new era and a discontinuity from the past.

The value in prior AI waves largely went to incumbents over startups, as the capabilities were not advanced enough to create new market openings. However, with the advent of new AI technologies, there is now a step function in new capabilities and products enabled, marking the dawn of a new era of tech.

ChatGPT's launch was a significant milestone in mainstreaming the idea that AI is a big deal in terms of new capabilities. However, we are still far away from peak AI usage or peak AI hype. Large enterprise planning cycles often take months, and prototyping and building AI-powered products can take up to a year for a large company. This indicates that there is still immense potential for growth and innovation in the field of AI.

In these early days, there are likely at least four waves of AI to consider. The first wave consists of GenAI native companies that have gained significant revenue and user traction, such as ChatGPT, Midjourney, Character.AI, Stable Diffusion, and Github Copilot.

The second wave, which is the current wave, involves early startup adopters and fast mid-market incumbents. These startups are launching on top of advanced AI models like GPT-3.5/4, and companies like Perplexity, Langchain, Harvey, and others are leading the way. Additionally, some founder-led multi-billion companies like Navan, Notion, Quora, Replit, and Zapier are quickly adopting AI-powered products.

The third wave, which is coming soon, will see the emergence of new startups using AI in different formats such as voice and video. Natural language will be utilized in more verticals and ways, and new types of infrastructure will enable incremental experiences. Companies like Eleven Labs, LMNT, LFG Labs, Braintrust, and many more will contribute to this wave of innovation.

Finally, the fourth wave is expected to arrive in 2024 or 2025 and will involve the first big enterprise adopters. As enterprise planning and build cycles are longer, it will take some time for larger companies other than Microsoft, Adobe, Google, and Meta to start launching AI-powered products.

In conclusion, achieving great work requires a combination of curiosity, effort, and original thinking. By focusing on your passions and interests, exploring connections between different fields, and embracing outlier ideas, you can create something truly remarkable. Additionally, in the early days of AI, recognizing the advancements and potential in the field can open up new opportunities for innovation. Stay committed, stay curious, and never stop pushing the boundaries of what is possible.

Actionable advice:

1. Identify your true passions and interests and align your work with them. This will provide you with a deep well of motivation and drive.
2. Foster a habit of original thinking by actively seeking out new ideas and perspectives. Engage in conversations, write about your interests, and ask thought-provoking questions.
3. Surround yourself with like-minded individuals who challenge and inspire you. Collaboration and diverse perspectives can fuel your creativity and push you to think outside the box.