Does everyone have a creative spirit?
Siobhan Spain, former director of Mainframe Studios, joins us to talk about the Des Moines StArtist Community and the origin stories of the largest non-profit studio building in the nation. We also discuss how to brew culture from within, First Fridays, exploring new technologies, monthly web3dsm events, artificial intelligence, artists in residencies, and the diffusing value of your brain on art.
Time travel with Jon Woodard! Founded in 1987, Wolfram Research is one of the world’s most respected computer, web, and cloud software companies, as well as, a powerhouse of scientific, mathematical, and technical innovation. Bask in the nerdy of this discussion on web3, blockchain, DeFi, NFTs, and artificial intelligence.
Jon started his work with Wolfram Alpha, helped establish Wolfram Blockchain Labs, and with new Wolfram integrations with Open AI, is now helping to active statistical, conversational AI into everything. He is also a generous Techstars mentor and is excited to continue supporting more innovators building tomorrow’s technology, today.
Welcome to my new weekly podcast, inspired by stories brewed from within. To celebrate the launch of You Don’t Need This Podcast, listen as I articulate a caffeinated manifesto for this podcast, introduce our friendly co-host (BEN BOT) and invite you to join in on the fun every Wednesday morning. Cheers!
Create a library of written works.
It can unfold into a timeless asset.
Imagine if you had already started writing. With no index cards required, welcome to your very own collection of organized, articulated thoughts, eh!
You will have embraced the moments of your own thoughts. You will also have felt the nourishment of released energy that awaits within the art of writing. Even more, you also moved past the fear and began “shipping your art” by sharing it within a community as well.
With your library of writings in place, even if traffic is low, your future self can become a real-time index. Available any time, from any device, and you’ll remember them all because you created them!
This treasure trove becomes super handy and very valuable! You can effectively add thickness to any interaction. What a timeless gift to yourself and to those you seek to serve, beyond so many beautiful, but brief sparks in time.
Quick temperature check. The world is experiencing a mainstream surge in AI, but don’t let that become an excuse. Anyone can now unleash AI and #ChatUX is so sweet, but those who show ingenuity will never be out created. Along with helping us all maintain intensity, your own writings can represent a honest heart connected to different topic you’re also talking about… maybe even building realities around as well!
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“Reading helps us understand the world.
Writing helps us understand ourselves.”
– Ben McDougal, Roasted Reflections
Does writing take serious time? Yes. Does publishing your writing online spark hesitations? Yes. Will writing welcome a creative release and potentially deliver more art for you to ship? Also yes.
Start writing my friend, then get generous by sharing it with us.
Chatbots have a PR problem.
On one hand, conversational AI combines large language models (“LLMs”), vast data sets, and interesting influence layers to provide insightful ideas and answers to almost any question. Chatbots provide a personalized interaction with education, content creator, language learning support, financial advice, customer assistance, helpful reminders for important tasks, co-founder assistance, and even mental health therapy. These AI companions munch on mediocre and are always available to chat. ChatGPT is the most well-known example, but other content creation methods, bot building platforms, and layered tools, such as BEN BOT and ChatSpot, are being activated in creative ways.
On the other hand, when most humans hear the word “chatbot”, the word serves up a slimy aftertaste. We think of automated help desks that put us in circles, fake followers on social media, the search tool that can never quite find an question, or that lead generation form that only wants to guide you to the next sale. Even with the best intention, a history of hacks fuel mistrust and makes it hard to avoid the spammy connotation.
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Hallucinating is when AI confidently delivers inaccurate responses.
Chatbots may not be able to interpret complex interactions, decode user intent, express empathy, or keep up with the rapid pace of change in the world, but it feels naive to pretend that conversational AI is not efficacious.
As we continue learning how to interact with this innovation, we need a term that is more inviting. A term that evokes trust. One that describes an intelligent counterpart with no agenda. When the user experience is not misguided by motive and AI is truly conversational, “ChatUX” may be the term we seek.
ChatUX describes the interaction between humans and software, unlocked by conversational AI.
Chat is an informal conversation or to talk in a friendly and informal way. UX is short for User Experience, which describes how we interact with a product or service. It includes our perception of value, ease of use, and efficiency. “ChatUX” can help us understand how to interact with emerging technology, while also improving the chatbot’s image.
ChatUX is not spam. ChatUX won’t take your job, sell you something you don’t want, or take over the world. ChatUX requires ingenuity. It is translation technology designed to access endless insight, with an ability to communicate it effectively. It’s software that speaks our language while supporting a timely, interesting, accurate, unbiased, and meaningful experience for anyone curious and generous enough to build beyond the status quo.
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I’m hosting a new podcast! Stay tuned for more caffeinated conversations around technology, entrepreneurship, intrapreneurship, and community building.