I have no qualms about AI being used in products. But when you have to tell me that something is "powered by AI" as if that's your main selling point, then you do not have a good product. Tell me what it does, not how it does it.

If I could have the equivalent of a smart speaker that ran the AI model locally and could interface with other files on the system. I would be interested in buying that.

But I don't need AI in everything in the same way that I don't need Bluetooth in everything. Sometimes a kettle is just a kettle. It is bad enough we're putting screens on fridges.

The irony is companies are being forced to implement it. Like our board has told us we must have "AI in our product.". It's literally a solution looking for a problem that doesn't exist.

Unsurprisingly. I have use for LLMs and find them helpful, but even I don't see why should we have the copilot button on new keyboards and mice, as well as on the LinkedIn's post input form.

And workers...

Hi, I'm annoying and want to be helpful. Am I helpful? If I repeat the same options again when you've told me I'm not helpful, will that be helpful? I won't remember this conversation once it's ended.

Hi, which option have you told me you already don't want would you like?

Sorry, I didn't quite catch that, please rage again.

I like my AI compartmentalized, I got a bookmark for chatGPT for when i want to ask a question, and then close it. I don't need a different flavor of the same thing everywhere.

For me, if a company fails to make a clear cut case about why a product of theirs needs AI, I'm gonna assume they just want to misuse AI to cheaply deliver a mediocre product instead of putting in the necessary cost of manhours.

I don't know anyone who is actively looking for products that have "AI".

It's like companies drank their own Kool aid and think because they want AI, so do the consumers. I have no need for AI. My parents don't even understand what it is. I can't imagine Gen Z gives a hoot.

Yeah and that is largely fueled by two things; poor/forced use of AI, and anti-AI media sentiment (which is in turn fueled by reactionary/emotional narratives that keep hitting headlines, commonly full of ignorance)

AI can still provide actual value right now and can still improve. No it's not the end-all but it doesn't have to solve humanity's problems to be worth using.

This unfortunate situation is largely a result of the rush to market because that's the world we live in these days. Nobody gives a fuck about completing a product they only care about completing it first, fuck quality that can come later. As a sr software engineer myself I see it all too often in the companies I've worked for. AI was heralded as christ's second coming that will magically do all of this stuff while still in relative infancy, ensuring that an immature product was rushed out the door and applied to everything possible. That's how we got here, and my first statement is where we are now.

I get AI has its uses but I don’t need my mouse to have any thing AI related (looking at you Logitech).

Absolutely, I was pretty upset when Google added Gemini to their Messages app, then excited when the button (that you can't remove) was removed! Now I've updated Messages again and they brought the button back. Why would you ever need an LLM in a texting app?

Edit: and also Snapchat, Instagram, and any other social media app they're shoveling an AI chat bot into for no reason

Edit 2: AND GOOGLE TELLING ME "Try out Gemini!" EVERY TIME I USE GOOGLE ASSISTANT ON MY PHONE!!!!!

AI in consumer devices at this point stands for data harvesting, wonky functionality and questionable usefulness. No wonder nobody wants that crap.

It's really simple: There are a number of use cases where generative AI is a legitimate boon. But there are countless more use cases where AI is unnecessary and provides nothing but bloat, maybe novelty at best.

Generative AI is neither the harbinger or doom, nor the savior of humanity. It's a tool. Just a tool. We're just caught in this weird moment where people are acting like it's an all-encompassing multipurpose tool right now instead of understanding it as the limited use specific tool it actually is.

AI is garbage.

I really fucking hated the android update where holding the power button summons Gemini before actually giving you the shut down menu.

I've been applying similar thinking to my job search. When I see AI listed in a job description, I immediately put the company into one of 3 categories:

1. It is an AI company that may go out of business suddenly within the next few years leaving me unemployed and possibly without any severance.
2. Management has drank the Kool-Aid and is hoping AI will drive their profit growth, which makes me question management competence. This also has a high likelihood of future job loss, but at least they might pay severance.
3. The buzzword was tossed in to make the company look good to investors, but it is not highly relevant to their business. These companies get a partial pass for me.

A company in the first two categories would need to pay a lot to entice me and I would not value their equity offering. The third category is understandable, especially if the success of AI would threaten their business.

It's because consumers aren't the dumbasses these companies think they are and we all know that the AI being shoved into everything fucking sucks worse than the systems we had before "AI."