No. 8: Artificial intelligence takes off

While leading artificial intelligence chatbot ChatGPT launched in late 2022, its impact began to be fully felt in 2023 with the popularity of generative AI – the production of content such as text and images.

An August McKinsey Global Survey report, which calls 2023 “generative AI’s breakout year,” found that nearly 79% of survey respondents said they’ve had at least some exposure to generative AI and that 22% regularly use it for work.

Projections from Next Move Strategy Consulting predict the value of AI will grow to nearly $2 trillion by 2030, compared with around $100 billion this year.

Local companies are taking notice of the popularity and potential uses of AI. Among them are Mostly Serious LLC and Carefully Crafted LLC, both of which launched AI applications in 2023.

Mostly Serious’ service, called Promptly, is a custom AI-powered plug-in for Craft content management system-based websites. The plug-in allows users to employ the same AI technology behind ChatGPT for use in producing website content.

At Carefully Crafted, the company debuted the Hey There custom AI platform that’s designed to provide specialized assistance to users. The platform offers hundreds of distinct personas depending on the need.

Scott Blevins, co-founder of Carefully Crafted, said AI can be an important tool in the toolbox for business owners.

“It kind of evens the playing field,” Blevins said in a May Springfield Business Journal article. “We’re a small business, and we don’t have the resources of a Facebook or Google or Amazon, but we feel like technology can help bridge the gap for people who aren’t already massive.”

The rise of AI also meant litigation this year.

In September, the 9,000-member Authors Guild filed suit against ChatGPT maker
OpenAI, alleging that works by many guild members are being used without permission to train chatbot algorithms to produce writing on demand.