Artificial Intelligence for Product Development and Entrepreneurship
How You Can Benefit from AI, and How LA NPDT Can Help
Artificial Intelligence (AI) – in the past twelve months, the cognitive computing revolution has gone from buzzy tech trend to seemingly everywhere; upending industries, labor contracts, and laws.
But for all its disruptive tendencies, AI is actually the latest development in a long evolution of technologies that, if used productively, place more creative power in the hands of individual people.
While only time will tell if AI can ultimately replace human-led actions and labor, for now at least, it can be used additively as a first-step tool in the pre-planning, guidance, and supplementing of human-created work.
That’s how the LA New Product Development Team (LA NPDT) is using AI – and how we’ll be focusing on utilizing it going forward in upcoming ventures.
But first, what exactly is AI, and how is it being used today? Why are so many people simultaneously excited, and worried, about its application? And most importantly, how can AI benefit entrepreneurs and inventors as they launch new companies?
Read on to find out!
How You Can Benefit from AI, and How LA NPDT Can Help
http://jmc.stanford.edu/As defined by John McCarthy, the renowned computer scientist known for his work with Stanford University, artificial intelligence is “the science and engineering of making intelligent machines, especially computer programs,” and furthermore, it “does not have to confine itself to methods that are biologically observable.” McCarthy goes on to define ‘intelligence’ itself as “the computational part of the ability to achieve goals,” which occur and can be observed in “people, many animals and some machines.”
[1] Given this definition and understanding, ‘artificial intelligence’ may be understood as a device or method which computes outcomes that can solve problems and address needs in the world – simultaneously a powerful tool that can aid human effort and computation, and a potential alternative to human effort entirely.
Within the broad category of artificial intelligence are the significant development fields of machine learning (the autonomized ingestion of data), and generative processes (the use of that data to output new outcomes). These strands of development are where the recent focus on AI has centered, and are of the greatest interest for this article.
How is AI Currently Being Used?
The earliest scientific work on artificial intelligence began during the 1950s, with continuous development ever since.
However, AI has only recently entered the public spotlight. The reason is not so much due to development of better programs or algorithms, but the combination of inexpensive and massive data processing abilities with the massive repositories of data accessible via the internet.
In other words, current AI advances are due to using brute force computer power to process public information.[2] This is why machine learning and generative AI have become the dominant developmental strands in artificial intelligence.
From this starting point, the current applications of AI, and why the technology is being focused on these specific areas, becomes clearer: all related areas are sectors where AI algorithms can access data, and which benefit from brute force processing for output.
Per a 2023 article in Forbes, the fifteen core areas for AI usage include healthcare (patient data analysis), customer service (chatbots), finance (fraudulent pattern detection), transportation (self-driving vehicles), agriculture (data analytics), retail (personalized recommendations), education (virtual tutors), human resources (document screening), environmental management (climate modeling), security (facial recognition), entertainment (content creation tools), legal services (document processing), space exploration (navigation), energy (smart grid optimization), and manufacturing (quality management).[3]
As can be seen from this list, the rough categories of work that AI performs can be roughly divided into analysis and processing, guidance, screening, engagement and consultation, and content generation.
These are broad applications, and nearly every business regardless of sector can benefit from the usage of these tools. That said, for business founders and inventors, there are very specific and tailored benefits AI can yield, either through self-directed effort, or in cooperation with a creative partner like LA NPDT.
What Are the Legal Regulations Surrounding AI Usage?
As with many rapidly-emerging new technologies, at present, relatively few legal restrictions on the use and implementation of AI exist.
This means that, while broad applicability and openness to development directions is possible, there is also the possibility of future regulation which may affect that applicability later.
Fortunately, both the United States and European Union governments have been actively clarifying regulatory status, as well as outlining consumer and business protections to promote fair and equitable use, while also striving to ensure security and privacy.
For the state of American regulations, the Electronic Privacy Information Center maintains a comprehensive status report on AI laws.
As of the end of 2023, ten states have passed laws regulating or incentivizing AI’s usage, while additional states have passed acts which amend current laws.
A majority of these laws and acts relate to consumer privacy and allow individuals to opt out of the use and collection of their personal data.[4]
In late 2023, the Biden Administration issued an Executive Order on proper usage of artificial intelligence, with specific focus on safety in data collection and retention, protection of consumer rights, and avoidance of implicit bias in algorithmic development.[5]
In the European Union, a provisional AI Act has been provided for adoption into formal law in 2024; this act classifies usage of AI by risk level, with regulation or prohibition assigned to certain high-risk implementations.
The EU also seeks to require that AI activities be regulated by humans, and that a single standardized definition of AI (regardless of platform or technology) be developed for regulatory clarity.[6]
Perhaps the largest legal grey area with AI, at least as concerns businesses, regards copyright and ownership of AI-generated content.
Because AI ingests large quantities of existing data, and in many cases ‘scrapes’ this data from public sources without respect to origination or ownership, the resultant works of an AI may potentially inadvertently infringe upon protected intellectual property.
Furthermore, United States law prevents copyright of material generated by a machine, which means that AI-produced works could potentially fall into an unprotectable state unless sufficient proof of human direction of the creative process can be established.
In a detailed 2022 article, tech-focused publication The Verge highlights both of these issues, with the conclusion that, at least in the US, the only solution will be a body of case law which will likely be established over the coming years.[7]
For the purposes of immediate protection and training of AI algorithmic models, however, a potential safeguard will be training exclusively, or at least in majority, with datasets that the company or organization deploying the AI controls.
How Can AI Aid Product Development?
Fundamentally, product development is about two key steps: formulating the idea, and then realizing it.
AI can help with both, first by aiding a creator to envision exactly what they want and cross-checking the vision against products that already exist, and then by serving as a generative tool in the iterative design process.
LA NPDT utilizes AI for both of these approaches. At the initiation stage, we offer an Invention Idea Analyzer Tool which gives feedback and consultation to creators.
Utilizing our own database of product design expertise, and self-improving from the feedback given to and received from the inventors who use the tool, our AI solution is constantly learning to better serve clients.
But this analysis isn’t all our AI can do. We also offer an AI-Powered Idea Generator, which helps take an inventor’s thoughts for a product and conceptualize them into a workable proposal.
Very often, creative people have a clear vision for what they want to achieve, but don’t necessarily know the best practical approach.
This is where our AI can help – it’s been trained on the project profiles of the hundreds of products we’ve helped develop, and therefore is an outstanding first-line tool to complement our team in helping to envision actionable steps to realize a product’s creation.
After the initial product envisioning, it’s time to get down to the business of design. Once again, AI can help this process.
Utilizing data analytics and generative AI, visualization, design optimization, and improved material selection are all possible.
[8] Furthermore, the use of AI for these tasks can greatly enhance the performance of product design teams, while simultaneously reducing the amount of design time, and possibly the final design cost as well.
In a 2020 study by McKinsey and Company, AI was found to potentially be able to reduce the cost of parts in a prototyped product by anywhere between 6% and 20%. In the same study, part weight could also be substantially reduced (between 10% and 50%) by analysis and selection of alternate manufacturing materials and techniques, thereby offering considerable improvement and material cost savings when moving the product to full production.
Importantly, the McKinsey analysis found that the best results came not from human-directed or AI-directed activity alone, but the combination of the two, by having an initial human-created design analyzed and reinterpreted by generative AI algorithms, and then re-designed by a final human-directed engineering pass.[9]
The McKinsey study also identified a significant further area where AI can aid in both product development and entrepreneurial activity: procurement analysis.
Using traditional (or even computer-enhanced) procurement models, it is difficult to properly weigh the cost/benefit breakdown of sourcing and partnership selection.
Once again, however, AI’s brute force computational strength helps with these models by ingesting vast quantities of data and then considering all possible outcomes.
The advantage of these tools is not necessarily the replacement of traditional analysis, but rather the supplementing of team-driven analysis with machine-driven calculation, thus allowing managers and executives to choose from a wider and more considered range of options and utilize lived experience and human-driven decision making more effectively.[9]
How Can AI Help Entrepreneurs?
Regardless of the type of business you wish to establish, AI is likely to be a part of your operations in the years to come.
When starting an enterprise, AI can help entrepreneurs conduct business viability assessments and compile market analysis.
After establishment, it can be used to review and suggest improvements to efficiency practices, and even to facilitate communicative exercises between team members.
As with product development, the use of AI in an entrepreneurial context should be viewed as a supplement to the work of a full team, as well as the lived experience of its leadership, rather than a replacement for either.[10]
Business owners are diving in and embracing the new technology. In an October 2023 report, the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council noted that 75% of their sample size of surveyed small businesses (507 out of 676) used AI tools as part of their operations.
The percentage of usage increased with the size of the business, indicating increased usefulness with scale. The leading areas of usage in the surveyed companies included email marketing (32%), logo and branding image creation (28%), transcription (26%), predictive analysis (23%), sales team support (21%), and translation (17%).
The scale of investment in AI remains fairly modest ($1,800 annual median), but 83% of the surveyed small business owners intend to maintain or increase their AI spending in 2024.[11]
As can be seen from this survey data, in many cases, the best uses of AI for a new or small business will be the reduction of traditional ‘busywork’ tasks which consume a large portion of a team’s time.
By utilizing artificial intelligence to speed up the creation of documents, reports, analyses, and communicative materials, teams can refocus their efforts on skill improvement, leadership advancement, and practical field experience.
A multitude of new tools from established tech and specialized industry players will continue to emerge, offering solutions tailored to specific needs.
How is LA NPDT Contributing to the AI Revolution?
The path to AI’s widespread adoption has been a long one, from the earliest days in the university and thinktank labs of the 1950s to the blue sky of speculative tech development today.
But where we stand now is only the beginning. In the coming months, LA NPDT and its partners will be announcing new tools and business ventures which utilize artificial intelligence to ease the burdens and increase the creative results of inventors and entrepreneurs, while remaining in line with the emerging regulation and guidance of this new and significant industry.
Our early tools, such as the Invention Idea Analyzer and Idea Generator, will be supplemented by internalized uses of these technologies, which our team will use during the development and consultation process. Finally, we will increasingly be considering ways for AI to be used within the products we help develop, leading the way with our partners in fulfilling the emerging needs of the world.
Through it all, it is important to remember what AI is, and what it is not. It is a transformative tool of the future that can deliver tremendous aid to and help for humanity.
It is not a replacement for that humanity, nor should it be used as an excuse to reduce or eliminate human expertise.
In a world where artificial intelligence is used well and responsibly, there will always be a strong and privileged place for human creativity, ingenuity, inspiration, and emotion; for after all, it is these that make us human, and lead us to continue to create innovation and enlightenment in the world.
This article was written by a human…
… or was it? 😉
REFERENCES
LA New Product Development Team is a comprehensive product development firm, offering services ranging from idea generation and product design to manufacturing and marketing. LANPDT collaborates with startups and established businesses to transform concepts into market-ready innovations.
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Thank you for choosing LA New Product Development Team for your Prior Art Search.
Please fill out the form to submit your order.
Upon successful payment, you will receive an email with a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and a questionnaire regarding your product idea.
Your privacy and security are paramount to us, so rest assured that your information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.
Step 1: Fill in your contact and billing details.
Step 2: Review your order summary.
Step 3: Submit payment.
After your payment is processed, please check your email for the NDA and questionnaire. Completing these documents promptly will allow us to start your Prior Art Search without delay.
If you have any questions or need assistance with your order, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
Thank you for choosing LA New Product Development Team for your Prior Art Search.
Please fill out the form to submit your order.
Upon successful payment, you will receive an email with a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) and a questionnaire regarding your product idea.
Your privacy and security are paramount to us, so rest assured that your information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.
Step 1: Fill in your contact and billing details.
Step 2: Review your order summary.
Step 3: Submit payment.
After your payment is processed, please check your email for the NDA and questionnaire. Completing these documents promptly will allow us to start your Prior Art Search without delay.
If you have any questions or need assistance with your order, please don’t hesitate to contact us.