What do you do if you want to establish yourself as a thought leader in AI?

Please aspire to be something more than a thought leader. There's always an excess of those and a shortage of people with deep technical skills.

True thought leadership transcends echoing popular ideas, focusing instead on original concepts and innovative strategies. It's about courageously challenging the status quo with new, albeit imperfect, ideas that provoke thought and drive the field forward. This contrasts sharply with the strategy of making bold, baseless predictions for temporary fame, a method that lacks real substance and long-term value. Thought leadership is rooted in deep understanding, rigorous thought, and a commitment to exploring uncharted territories. Thought leaders understand their influence on the direction of research, policy, and practice. They approach their role with a sense of responsibility, ai to make contributions constructive to the field's growth.

I am yet to meet someone who puts "Thought Leader" in their LinkedIn profile and is recognised as such in the academic AI community.

First and foremost become a practitioner and get your hands dirty tinkering with tools that are relevant or exciting to you as a way to improve your own life or professional duties with AI. As you begin to get this visceral experience of skill-stacking it has a compound effect on your competency and as you begin to share this with others in your niche market you will be seen as a trusted and authentic voice that they can learn from and contribute to and the "thought leader" stuff will take care of itself if that is one of your ancillary or primary goals.

Defining your niche is about finding, defining, and refining your authentic voice in the field and through the tools, pinpointing a specific segment within the broad spectrum of AI that resonates with your expertise and passions. This specificity not only sets you apart in a densely populated field but also deepens your impact and contributions to your area of focus.

If you want to establish yourself as a thought leader in AI, you almost certainly aren't one and never should be one. Instead, concentrate on contributing to the field.

Please refrain from regurgitating the same old free AI courses on this platform, or commenting with very short and generic observations under posts that appear to be gaining traction or engagements. The best way to stand out is to genuinely learn about innovations, challenging assumptions, offering a balanced analysis and judgement about the opportunities presented by AI, along with the limitations of some of the approaches we're seeing today. Engage with experts on important topics, provide insights and share interesting viewpoints. Don't fall into the trap of doing what everyone else is doing when it comes to AI. Avoid using ChatGPT to produce dull content on your behalf, it will quickly become obvious and you'll lose credibility.

Contribute to the AI community by sharing what you are finding and learning with others. Find and Focus on a specific area of AI, or where you solved a unique business problem or challenge using AI.

Publish Articles and Blog Posts: Share your knowledge and insights by writing articles or blog posts on relevant AI topics. Publish on your own platform, industry publications, or platforms like Medium or LinkedIn. Create Presentations and Give Talks: Present your research findings or thought leadership perspectives at conferences, meetups, or online webinars. This allows you to connect with a wider audience and showcase your expertise. Engage in Online Discussions: Participate in online forums, discussions, and social media groups related to AI. Share your knowledge, answer questions, and engage in thoughtful discussions to establish yourself as a knowledgeable voice in the community.

We learn by doing, and for generative AI, most of us are only a step or two ahead of those we’re teaching. Learn something. Teach it. Or just show it. Don’t release it as “top tricks” people might be attracted to magic but they want substance. Be substantial.

Who do you read? Who do you follow? Who informs your work with AI? Connect with them. Comment on their posts. Engage in their discussions. When you've built up enough back and forth that they recognize your name, connect and start a direct conversation. Add something of value to individuals in your network, and they'll start listening and paying attention to you. Network theory highlights that loose ties yield faster and more information flow. How can you efficiently cultivate your loose ties to grow your network?

Collaborating with others – especially those whom are smarter than you – is pivotal to growth across any field, especially emerging and fast growing fields such as AI. Reach out and engage with experts and the wider community. Foster idea exchange and try to collaborate on projects together. This adds to advancement in and of the field and is highly beneficial for professional and personal growth.

Building thought leadership in AI necessitates community engagement and collaboration, fostering a network that enhances learning, idea exchange, and trust, ultimately amplifying impact and reach in the ecosystem.

Connect with Influencers: Network with established AI researchers, practitioners, and thought leaders. Attend industry events, connect on social media, and collaborate on projects if possible. Collaborate on Research: Consider collaborating with other AI professionals on research projects. This allows you to share knowledge, gain new perspectives, and potentially co-author publications that can further enhance your credibility. Mentor Others: If you have the experience, consider mentoring aspiring AI professionals. Sharing your knowledge and helping others grow can solidify your position as a thought leader within the community.

Interagissez avec d'autres professionnels et organisations en IA. Assistez à des conférences, webinaires et ateliers en IA. Exemple : Rejoignez des groupes LinkedIn liés à l'IA ou des forums comme Reddit’s r/MachineLearning, et participez activement aux discussions. Collaborez avec d'autres experts en IA sur des projets de recherche ou co-écrivez des articles.

Synthesise. Bring disparate elements together and use AI to help you make something new. Innovation is much easier when there are lots of things on the table. Like playing with Lego, bring more resources together and work through combinations quickly. Don’t be afraid to discard what doesn’t work. Remember the 80/20 rule. Not all AI chats lead to enlightenment, the next cool thing or something useful. Just like real life.

Showcase Real-World Applications: Whenever possible, showcase the practical applications of your AI expertise. Develop projects, prototypes, or case studies that demonstrate the real-world impact of AI solutions. Highlight Ethical Considerations: As AI continues to evolve, responsible AI development is crucial. Advocate for ethical practices and contribute to discussions on potential biases and responsible AI implementation. Track Your Progress: Monitor the reach and engagement of your content, presentations, or projects. This helps you understand your impact and identify areas where you can further refine your approach.

Networking is key, look for conferences, workshops, meetups, or online communities . Networking and collaborating helps us learn from others, exchange ideas, and develop strategic partnerships and find crucial talent.

Travaillez sur des projets ou des expérimentations innovantes en IA qui peuvent contribuer de nouvelles connaissances ou outils au domaine. Exemple : Développez un outil open-source en IA qui adresse un problème spécifique dans votre niche, et partagez votre processus de développement et vos trouvailles avec la communauté.

Get hands-on! And show don't tell. There are too many pontificators and "Top 20 prompts to use for ...". Showcase how you're specifically using the tools and recommendations you're offering. Often, the "go try this" doesn't quite work as well as one things it should. Why or why not? How did you fix and resolve the issue at hand? A well-communicated experiment is worth 1,000 AI-generated words. Don't rehash other people's content - do something worth sharing, experiment, and then tell your audience about what you did and learned.

While AI technologies are reshaping how influencers create content for their audience, alignment of visionary thinking related to AI with ethics and authenticity is key to architect safe and actionable AI technologies. "The real question is not whether machines think but whether men do."

Being transparent, authentic, and ethical within the AI space is truly important. It’s how longer term trust and reputation will be established, shaped, and maintained in terms of people or business that are available to work with. Organizations and individuals need to be prepared and open when discussing such things as what data was used to train AI models. As Tech leaders we can’t continue to hide behind the same explanation(s) of “public data sets, data sources”, give credit where credit is due, pay to use the data or simply don’t use the data.

I include by default cybersecurity in any AI project. Cyber must be perceived as a 'business partner" to deliver AI with ethic and authenticity. Cyber and AI are both driving changes but also impacting gouvernance.

The crux (and kryptonite) of AI is trust. Garner trust by clearly citing the ideas, libraries, and tools that you're using to create your corner of brilliance. Many corners of AI are at the edge of ethics and law. Be mindful to have appropriate conversations in appropriate contexts.

Acknowledging the broader implications of AI (both positive and negative) and advocating for its responsible use are crucial for maintaining trust and is what ultimately helps us use AI and to build tools that lead us to preferrable outcomes and preferrable futures.

To be perceived as a thought leader in any field, including AI, you need to meet several criteria. Firstly, have thoughts on the topic worth sharing and create content that is worth following. Secondly, be your true self to make your posts authentic. Thirdly, engage socially to build a community that interacts not only with you or about your content but also with each other, thus boosting the creation of more engaging content. Obviously, expertise in your chosen AI niche is crucial, which comes from learning and experimenting with, or even creating, new AI tools. Create content that matters by either sharing tips and know-how for professionals or showcasing something you have created with compelling context and captivating storytelling.

Establishing yourself as an AI thought leader is achievable in many ways, such as focusing on a deep technical understanding or being a strategic visionary for the technology's broader implications. Invariant of your focus, there are some essential common principles. The first is to be a credible expert in your chosen area, whether from demonstrated experience, extensive qualifications, or both. The second is to select an area relevant to a broader audience to provide value. By being credible and relevant, you can develop a community of interested people based on your concepts and work. Over time, this will position you as a thought leader in particular AI areas.

- Share your knowledge and experiences in AI through blogs, articles, or social media. - Engage with Community discussions, attend events, and participate in online forums to connect with others in the AI field. - Stay up-to-date on the latest trends, research, and developments in AI to maintain relevance. - Work on projects, contribute to open-source, and showcase your expertise through practical applications. - Provide solutions, tips, and advice that genuinely help others in the AI community.

To become a thought leader in AI, start by identifying role models in the field and closely follow their work for inspiration. Push beyond your comfort zone to share and promote your insights—seek out speaking opportunities at conferences or local meetups, many of which are free and can help build your reputation. Create engaging content based on your work and share it across your social media platforms to reach a wider audience. Don't forget to leverage your personal network too; let family and friends know about your passion and projects. This combination of public engagement and personal promotion will help establish your presence in the AI community.

Integrating empathy, and adopting both a human-centered and ecology-centered approach in AI development is paramount. It's vital to recognize and prioritize the needs, experiences, and values of people, as well as the well-being of our world and our collective future. This focus and approach in creating and applying AI is essential for developing solutions that not only benefit humanity and enrich the human condition but also steer us toward a healthier and more promising future.