By Georgia Greening, Experienced Engineer
The ATC Williams Sunshine ‘Sunny’ Coast team embarked on an exciting month-long journey with ‘AI July’, focusing on integrating artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance their workflow. The objective was to leverage AI technologies to improve problem-solving capabilities, automate tasks, and increase overall efficiency.
AI July involved a two-tiered strategy: Trial A, which involved testing and evaluating ‘Internet AIs’ for problem-solving, and Trial B, which focused on ‘Work Integrated AIs’ for task automation and efficiency enhancement. Below is a recap of the key aspects of AI July.
Trial A: Internet AIs
During Trial A, the Sunny Coast team explored various Internet AIs. One of the commonly known options was ChatGPT. Additionally, Google released Bard AI, using the Pathways Language Model (PaLM), while Microsoft launched an updated version of Bing, powered by ChatGPT-4.
The following rules and protocols were put in place:
- Data Security: Strict adherence to non-disclosure agreements and information storage conflict was crucial. No ATC Williams or client data was uploaded to the AI or the internet, aligning with standard work practices.
- Verification and Vigilance: All responses generated by the AIs had to be verified. The information provided was solely used for reference and required independent verification. It was acknowledged that AIs could have biases and sometimes produce inaccurate or fabricated information.
- Experimentation: Each team member was encouraged to keep at least one AI open at all times, allowing them to experiment with different AIs and determine the most effective ones.
- Documentation: Detailed note-taking was highly recommended, especially when encountering incorrect or biased information.
Trial B: Work Integrated AIs
During Trial B, the Sunny Coast team delved into Work Integrated AIs, primarily focusing on Grammarly. Grammarly has expanded its AI capabilities with GrammarlyGO and Knowledge Share. GrammarlyGO, powered by GPT-3, offers features like email summarisation and response suggestions. Knowledge Share integrates keywords, descriptions, and associated documents, providing relevant background details for tasks and projects. Grammarly was considered a low-risk option for handling work-sensitive information.
Verdict
AI, particularly language models like Bard (a favourite) and ChatGPT, was incredibly useful for editing writing, summarising text, and pinpointing information. These language models are efficient tools for generating written content and assisting with some administrative tasks. While Grammarly was useful for prefilling replies and identifying grammatical errors, it was not as beneficial as anticipated.
Language models were not good at tasks that required mathematical equations or logical reasoning. These tasks require a deep understanding of mathematical concepts and specialised algorithms — domains beyond the current capabilities of language models.
Limitations and Things to Consider
While AI has demonstrated promising value, it is essential to acknowledge its limitations. AI is trained on large amounts of data and can lead to biased, incorrect, or incomplete information.
Addressing information security concerns and protecting client data was vitally crucial during AI July — no client data was to be uploaded. This highlights the need for companies to set up robust rules and protocols to ensure high-security standards are in place for AI integration.
Conclusion
The Sunny Coast team remains optimistic about the benefits of AI and is excited to find new ways to integrate AI into the workplace and improve workflow. AI July highlighted the potential of AI tools and the importance of setting robust data security protocols. It is also essential to validate, critically think about, and exercise caution when relying on AI-generated information.
Final Thoughts
While we don’t have AI engineers yet, the Sunny Coast team is confident that AI will play a major role in the future and are committed to using it to benefit both the company and our clients.
You can follow Georgia on Linkedin here
