Artificial intelligence has its place; however, AI’s place should also be in jail for theft of trust that we enable it to steal.
Recently, I read an article allegedly written by someone known to me personally within the legal services sector. I say “allegedly” because I suspect it was either written or heavily edited by AI.
Why am I suspicious? Because the article was devoid of his personality and voice.
The language was flat, boring, predictable, and soulless. This made his article so generic that it could have been written by anybody or an amalgamation of many anybodys.
After reading it, I felt a chill of disillusionment. I was also resentful for having been seduced into spending time to read something that had been either machine-generated or machine-polished. My trust level was depleted, and I wondered if I really knew him as well as I thought I did.
Never Surrender
It put me in mind of The Weeknd’s song, “Can’t Feel My Face” with its title describing symptomatic numbness of cocaine addiction and, therefore, an inability to feel one’s face.
With all due respect to The Weeknd and the song’s serious subject matter, I couldn’t help but wonder if – taken to extremes – he also can’t feel his face because he put it though an AI generator in an attempt to make himself into a bobble head, superhero, or who knows what.
For the love of all that’s holy, please don’t give away your face, voice, words, or thoughts.
This is true in general. However, in the legal services sector with its foundation predicated on the highly valued human-based relationship of trust, it’s vitally important that you present yourself as the person you truly are.
The Value of You
Willfully enabling AI to hone its learning based on who and what you are is theft of the best of what makes you “you”.
If AI becomes more human in abilities and more like you in nature, you’ll only have yourself to blame. Worst of all, those who know you, won’t know “you” anymore. And that will be both your loss and theirs.
See and feel your face. Speak with your voice. Write your words. Think your thoughts.
Value these blessings because they are unique to you. They are most certainly valued by those who know and appreciate you being “you”.
Your uniqueness makes you one of one: the best brand strategy you can possibly have.
Let AI steal someone else’s face, voice, words, and thoughts.
You keep yours.
Not Famous Last Words
Professionally, AI has numerous benefits to enable efficiency in our working world, and is and will continue to have an enormous impact on the legal services market.
Personally, if there comes a time when I don’t look, sound, or think like myself, it won’t be because I have succumbed to the charms of AI’s alleged improvements. It’s more likely that I will have been abducted by aliens. If so, please rescue me.
Heather Suttie is acknowledged as one of the world’s leading authorities on legal market strategy and management of legal services firms.
Since 1998, she has advised leaders of premier law firms and legal service providers — Global to Solo | BigLaw to NewLaw — on innovative growth strategies pertaining to business, markets, management, and clients. The result is creation of new value and accelerated performance achieved through a distinctive one of one legal market position and sustained competitive advantage leading to greater market share, revenue, and profits.
Heather writes on these issues at heathersuttie.ca and can be reached at heather@heathersuttie.ca