How AI Will Change Strategy: A Thought Experiment
Most people are familiar with shopping at Amazon. Like with most online retailers, you visit their website, shop for items, place them in your "virtual basket," pay for them, and then Amazon ships them to you. Right now, Amazon's business model is shopping-then-shipping.
Most shoppers have noticed Amazon's recommendation engine while they shop — it offers suggestions of items that their AI predicts you will want to buy. On average, we actually purchase about one out of every 20 items it recommends. Not bad!
Imagine the AI collects more information about us: in addition to our searching and purchasing behavior on their website, it also collects other data it finds online, including social media, as well as offline, such as our shopping behavior at the supermarket. It knows not only what we buy, but also what time we go to the store, which location we shop at, how we pay, and more.
Now, imagine the AI uses that data to improve its predictions. At some point, the AI's prediction accuracy crosses a threshold, such that it becomes in Amazon's interest to change its business model.
Imagine, everyweek, Amazon ships you boxes of items it predicts you will want, and then you shop in the comfort and convenience of your own home by choosing the items you wish to keep from the boxes they delivered.
Of course, shoppers would not want to deal with the hassle of returning all the items they don't want. So, Amazon would invest in infrastructure to collect the unwanted products.
Why hasn't Amazon done it already? If it were implemented today, the cost of collecting and handling returned items would outweigh the increase in revenue. But you can be sure they are working on it！
生词好句
like with: similar to, in the same way as, just like.
not only…but (also)...: this structure emphasizes that both pieces of information in the sentences should be surprising or unexpected, with the second one being even more surprising than the first. (注: 中国学生甚至老师都十分爱使用这一结构，但其实这一结构在英语国家的日常口语交流中并不常用，母语者通常使用这一结构在正式语境下接续形容词。)
at some point: at a time in the future that is not specific; at an unspecified time in the future.
cross a threshold /ˈθrɛʃəʊld//ˈθrɛʃˌhəʊld/: go beyond or over a certain level of sth. (threshold: a level at which sth. happens)
in someone's interest: for one's benefit or advantage.
in the comfort of your own home: in the comfort and cozy environment of your own home. (no idiomatic or hidden meaning)
with(out) the hassle of /ˈhas(ə)l/: with(out) the trouble of sth. (常用搭配: without all the hassle of doing...)
"Some people call this artificial
intelligence, but the reality
is this technology will enhance
us. So instead of artificial
intelligence, I think we'll
augment our intelligence."
Ginni Rometty, CEO of IBM
