Consolidation Cometh

Hello All!

We’re back after a bit of an absence since what seemed like a minor home repair emergency turned into an extended hotel stay. I was always charmed by the original details in our 100 year old home, until I realized that it extended beyond the crown molding and into, you know, the plumbing.

I usually limit myself to AI advice but I will make a brief exception to say if you ever end up in a similar situation and need to make an extended stay hotel feel at least a little like home, treat yourself to some relaxing scented candles and bring the good toilet paper.

Now, onto this week’s Actionable Advice!

I have been banging this drum for a while now, but the sad fact is so many new and innovative AI products from smaller companies are going to be toast. Companies like Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI dominate on distribution, and every week it seems like another niche one-function tool I love is duplicated as a feature in an ecosystem I’m already invested in.

Take, for example, Fireflies AI, which essentially acts as your meeting co-pilot, taking notes for you, and providing transcripts, action items, summaries, etc. Very cool tool, and early to market among a slew of similar ones.

But, Zoom launched a lot of these features in their app not long ago. Now, Microsoft has launched similar tools within Teams and is using Co-Pilot to integrate AI into your daily Office use.

Looly runs mostly on Google products, as do many small businesses. If that’s the case for you, there’s a great opportunity for you to start using some of their AI features early (if you control your company’s Google Workspace - or can lobby the folks that do!).

Here’s a quick video on how to turn on Google Duet, and start integrating their AI tools whenever you use Google Meet, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and more!

Like Microsoft’s Copilot, there is an additional $30/user/month cost for Google’s Duet after a free trial (funny how they both have the same exact price, ain’t it?). But if your org is racking up lots of one-off AI subscriptions, it may make sense to consolidate costs through your main office email/software provider.

Hopefully the distribution advantage of the major players doesn’t stifle innovation in the space too much, but after some… irrational investor enthusiasm where it felt like every startup with “AI” in the name was getting funding, this kind of consolidation feels rather inevitable.

As a startup veteran, my heart goes out to the host of young ‘uns joining new ventures with stars in their eyes, checking Zillow and planning what kind of house they’ll buy once their company has a wildly successful IPO. But know what?

And, longevity is a serious concern when deciding to implement AI tools. Before you invest a ton of time spending money/training staff on a specific tool, it’s worth asking if the company is still going to be around in two years. Sadly, many won’t be.

There has been a whole lot of news (as usual) in the AI world this week. Here’s some of the most interesting pieces I’ve come across recently!

1. AI: So human they can do insider trading!

2. Up your game, ladies. Wage gap won’t close anytime soon unless we catch up on using AI.

3. Looly can do a lot of this legwork for you, but if you’re a committed DIYer, here’s a decent guide on how to choose the right tools for you.

4. Truly a show about nothing, at this point.

AI can be a great partner in some of the repetitive aspects of a job search. I have no problem with people using it for finding roles, tweaking resumes, and writing cover letters (because it’s 2023 and who reads cover letters anyways?).

Candidates using GPT in a live interview though, particularly when evaluating for technical roles, will definitely become a problem. In person interviews can be very costly, especially if you’re building out a remote team. I don’t agree with Ethan that remote interviews are “over” - but this is a problem someone will need to solve!

That’s all for this week - as always, feel free to reach out with any feedback by replying to this email!

And of course, it’s always much appreciated if you’d like to forward to anyone you think might find this content useful or share on social, etc.

Finally, if you or someone you know needs a little help getting started with implementing AI for either business or personal use, don’t hesitate to be in touch to see how Looly can help!

Happy Weekend!

Caitlin