AI as a Societal Issue?

If there were only one takeaway about AI, it would be that AI is first and foremost a tool; a wonderful tool that, in the wrong hands, can be a genuine danger.

It's clear that it's only a matter of time before AI surpasses us in cognitive performance. When I was a kid, I remember all the fuss when Kasparov was beaten by IBM's Watson. At the time, it seemed natural to me, in the sense that I grew up with the idea that computers are increasingly extraordinary and powerful, and that inevitably, they'd end up outperforming us on a dedicated protocol. It's a program that executes probabilities, and it can do it faster and better than we can.

However, having a program capable of surpassing even the most brilliant human across all available knowledge while maintaining extraordinary speed -- now that's mind-blowing! A revolution like this in the hands of people advancing science and medicine is a whole new territory to explore. In the wrong hands, it could prove catastrophic...

That's why, as a very active player in the field of Artificial Intelligence, we believe we have a genuine duty given our level of expertise on the subject. We must fully step up to help absolutely everyone grow their understanding of AI.

As of today, it's clear that knowledge about AI is uneven, yet it's a topic that keeps growing in importance and it certainly won't stop here. At the very least, Reboot has a responsibility to raise awareness and train as many people as possible, to lay the knowledge on the table so that everyone can form their own opinion.

This isn't just a business issue -- it's also a topic that will likely become increasingly political, in the sense of how we live together as a society. We will need to answer tough questions that may challenge certain foundations of our societies.

For better or for worse, it will be up to humanity to take an informed stance on the matter.

If I'm being deliberately vague here, it's simply because we took the time to go into detail during four conferences to provide a comprehensive introduction to AI -- conferences that I'm sharing at the end of this article.

Following this series of conferences, we decided to strengthen and launch several initiatives.

Initiative 1: Leading by Example

Following the webinars, we decided to officially launch a podcast we called "Toujours +" (Always More).

The name comes from the fact that at Reboot, we always push every topic a little further. How many times a day does someone bring up a subject and others keep raising the bar (you can't imagine how often it's genuinely hilarious).

We will continue hosting live conferences on YouTube and LinkedIn, except from now on we will be giving the floor to anyone who has something to say with conviction about AI.

It seems obvious to me that AI should spark constructive debates, and even though at Reboot we want it to contribute to a better world, we're by no means naive (far from it). Just as AI impacts every sector and everyone, interesting people from all walks of life will have the opportunity to express their views.

I'm very eager to announce the upcoming sessions, but I'd rather share the details once the schedule is finalized.

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Initiative 2: Expanding Our Training Programs

When we officially launched the AI Squad in September 2023, the team was convinced that the market was very mature on the subject of AI (which was obviously not the case). Right away, we started using expert-level discourse with all stakeholders, assuming they'd be at least at our level.

By March 2024, we had adjusted to deliver tailored messaging depending on the level of our audience, and something particularly important to me: we know how to speak everyone's language -- from the CEO to the deeply technical person, through marketing and beyond. Our team is highly complementary, and I myself step in as an AI expert on strategy, organizational, and other challenges.

We were already offering on-demand training as shown on our website: https://rebootia.com/formations-ia/

Today, we want to go further: we are going to open training sessions -- both in-person and remote -- where people can register either directly or by funding the training through their company's professional development budget, since we are a Qualiopi-certified training organization.

For in-person sessions, we require a minimum group of 5 people, up to a maximum of 10.

You can book a training session yourself by organizing it: if you put together a group of 6 people, your spot is free.

We'll have programs for all levels with trainers, including myself, who know what they're talking about because it's their daily reality.

We're preparing dedicated communications on this topic.

In the meantime, you can visit our website or contact Anael by email, who is in charge of the Reboot Academy: anael.blum@reboot-conseil.com

The Conferences

Conference 1: AI Is a Revolution

The first conference presents the vision of AI as a revolution, and where there's revolution, there's upheaval.

Through history, we can answer some of the questions.

On the agenda:

• A historical look at industrial revolutions and their lessons for understanding AI.

• The evolution of AI: from its technical beginnings to its business and societal applications.

• Why and how to adopt AI in organizations, regardless of their size and structure.

• The ethical, environmental, and organizational challenges tied to AI.

• Concrete examples and inspiring use cases to optimize your processes right now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5fHGlw-ebw&t

Conference 2: Can We Trust an AI?

Topics covered:

• Understanding the stages of AI perception: from fascination to mistrust.

• Concrete examples of trust, or the lack thereof, in fields such as science, food industry, or finance.

• The core principles of trustworthy AI: legality, robustness, fairness, transparency, and accountability.

• Pitfalls to avoid and solutions to ensure safe and ethical AI systems.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UV6K6RVKxcc&ab_channel=RebootConseil

Conference 3: The AI That Doesn't Need You

On the agenda:

• The basics: What is an AI agent and what are its main characteristics?

• The latest industry trends (Microsoft, Perplexity, Wimo, etc.).

• Benefits for businesses: flexibility, productivity gains, automation, decision-making support.

• Risks to anticipate: bias, security, costs.

• An exclusive technical demo on implementing an AI agent with the React design pattern, using frameworks like LangChain and LangGraph.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ew_Keo1Go54&t

Conference 4: Beyond Good and Evil

Here's what you'll discover:

How AI is improving medicine, education, and our autonomy.

The impacts of AI on our jobs, social interactions, and democracies.

The ethical dilemmas and geopolitical challenges of a rapidly expanding technology.

A look at the "dark side" of AI: domination, addiction, and disinformation.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtUKzlpJn1g&t