You are what you eat. Here’s why AI should be fed – and trained – like an Olympic athlete. ??

The world’s most talented athletes have stepped up to the blocks having spent years preparing for the moment that starter pistol fires - honing their talent, building their mastery, even reprogramming their thoughts, beliefs and behaviors to be the very best version of themselves.

The future champions of AI need a similar commitment.

The power of this incredible technology lies in its potential to liberate us from the mundane and inspire us to even greater human creativity. At its best, it can make us more efficient while democratizing imagination and execution. But beyond the risks you’ve already read about many times over; from copyright to brand safety and security, there’s something else - the very real danger that the world will be flooded with ‘made by AI’; an undifferentiated mass of nothing new.

#1. First up, embrace the challenge. ??

True champions of sport do not run away from challenges, they run towards them. They seek out new tools and techniques when these new challenges arise. The champions of creative industries must do the same, and run towards the tools of AI. They should eagerly look to master the tools of AI, understanding it as a method of staying one step ahead of their competition. If you want to win, it is imperative to utilize any and every tool that will give you an advantage; that is the mindset and responsibility of a champion.

#2. Identify the right diet for your AI to grow big and strong. ???

AI relies on its models being constantly fed - they need it to survive and to thrive. Think of them like hungry caterpillars constantly consuming human creativity and interpretation to learn and grow. It’s no surprise then, that just like the Olympic athlete, the better the input - the fuel - the AI receives, the better the output. Thus, your artificial intelligence is only as strong as the knowledge it is fed.?

Universal tools have their place, of course, but the unique building blocks of a company's creative muscle should be tapped into. To the creative agencies - why not train your AI on decades of your very best work and knowledge across the brand experience? Work that is truly disruptive and impactful.

AI programs will continue to grow in capability and scope but one thing we know is that AI can’t learn from other AI alone. Strange things happen when it tries. What’s more, scraping the internet exposes AI to not only the best of what’s out there, but also the worst. Quantity over quality is not always the answer. Instead, a diet of disruptive human input is what will help elevate our strategic and creative output for the future.

#3. Getting to Gold.???

Many companies are focused on what we consider AI Table Stakes - learning the basic skills to achieve enhanced efficiency through automation. There is no question that AI will be a vital component of automating otherwise time-consuming, low value work. Like analyzing and synthesizing data, versioning, and translating. Clients want to see that. And everyone is going to have those capabilities.

It’s the Now and Next of AI that will ultimately help our industry compete with culture.

The Now is making us smarter and faster. Companies are already harnessing the power of AI to automate what we do, and we continue to explore what it can do for us when it comes to speed, scale and cost.

The Next is how we will get even better. So embrace it. Fuel your AI’s growth with your own Now and Next tailored approach.

There is no doubt AI can save us from the drudgery of grunt work that slows us down and kills creativity. But it can also help us all focus on the most disruptive solutions; expanding the forms, channels and ideas we develop to meaningfully bring disruption to more companies, more categories, and more challenges.

Our responsibility is to be in tune with our athlete, to know what it needs and when so that it can be the supercharger we’re looking for.

#4. A continued commitment to mastery. ??

In the world of creativity, we’re concerned by the number of companies sharing AI visions centered on value capture, rather than demand creation. Driven by algorithms that focus on content personalization at the kind of scale we have never seen before, if we don’t take care, that AI-fuelled sea of sameness comes rapidly into view.?

Athletes are constantly doubling down on their commitment to their sport. To elevate imagination and design and to create the most beautiful and engaging experiences, we must also double down and commit to the mastery of AI as a new craft. Immersing ourselves in it is the only sure-fire way to ensure it stretches, rather than replaces, the human touch that drives our craft.?

We mustn’t be afraid of AI. It can be our co-creator rather than our enemy.