The AI Surge: A Dot-Com Déjà Vu or the Dawn of a Tech Utopia?

In the high-stakes world of technology stocks, the potent combination of artificial intelligence hype and looming Federal Reserve decisions is stirring a dynamic debate among investors - are we witnessing a replay of the dot-com bust or the dawn of a sustained rally?

Greg's Words

There is so much activity in the technology realm, it may be difficult to concentrate on one issue.  

Follow the money.

There may be a wave of new hardware just over the horizon as AI-compliant/optimized chips hit the market.

Imagine every, single one of today's computing devices needing to be replaced to handle artificial intelligence.  The market is breathtaking.

A Quick Tour of the Xerox R/D Labs, sans "M" ...

10/2009

I "peeled" the following out of an article by Jennifer Kavur, over at Computer World.

A couple of revealing subjects popping over the horizon from X.

Check it out.

CTO Sophie Vandebroek provided an overview of Xerox's R&D strategy, which focuses on information explosion, mass customization and sustainability.

Long-life photoreceptors

Xerox has advanced the life of photoreceptors by 50 per cent with the development of a polymer composite that acts as a protective chemical armor against surface wear and scratches. The new photoreceptors, which were implemented into the 4112 and 4127 monochrome copier/printer models this summer, can achieve about one million prints and 33 per cent fewer replacement cartridges.

The ultimate goal is to develop photoreceptors that will last the entire life of the machine, said Giuseppa DiPaola-Baranyi, laboratory manager for Materials Integration at the XRCC. This involves leveraging expertise in smart materials design and nanotechnology to design molecules for next-generation photoreceptors with self-healing capabilities, she explained.

"For example, when you scratch your hand and you heal, that's a biological process. We're looking at how we do that analogy for photoreceptors. How do we use smart materials design, how do we use nanotechnology to give us life-of-the-machine components that can repair themselves so that any damage is oblivious to the rest of the systems," DiPaola-Baranyi.

Reusable paper

To meet the continued demand for paper and reduce the amount of energy used for recycling, Xerox researchers are developing paper for printing temporary images that can be erased on demand. The end goal is the ability to reuse one sheet of paper up to ten times with prints that can last three to five days.

While paper usage per individual is declining in developed countries, paper usage in developing countries is on the rise due to growing economies and more people having access to computers and printers, said Adela Goredema, project leader for Reusable Paper at XRCC.

"Everyone was thinking that the office of the current millennium would be paperless, but as we know that is not the case ... We can recycle paper, but the amount of energy required to recycle is also quite significant," she said.

To make one sheet of paper from virgin pulp requires about 204,000 Joules of energy, which is enough to run a 60 watt light bulb for about one hour; making one sheet of recycled paper requires about 114,000 Joules, which is enough to run the same 60 watt bulb for about 30 minutes, she pointed out.

Natural language colour

Xerox is making it easier to edit colour in digital documents by translating words into numbers with Natural Language Color technology. The software allows users to make adjustments in colour by selecting everyday words and phrases from drop-down menus to create a phrase such as "make the skin-tone colours slightly more warm." Over 50,000 colour variations are supported.

The technology has been introduced in the Xerox Phaser 7500 colour printer as a Color By Words feature and accessible online in a test lab called Open Xerox. Xerox plans to expand the technology into other printer and MFP models in the future.

Rob Rolleston, technical manager of the Workflow and Documents area at the Xerox Research Center in Webster, N.Y., encourages visitors to the site. "We are trying to get customer feedback. We are calling this customer-led innovation," he said.

Printable organic electronics

Xerox envisions a flexible monitor that can "fold neatly into a briefcase" and a smart hospital gown that "monitors your vital signs and displays them for the nurse or doctor to see" as potential end uses of printable electronics technology.

An alternative to silicon, electronic materials promise to be "durable, flexible, lightweight and economical" and printable on large flexible substrates. The technology, currently in development at XRCC, will have significant implications on the consumer electronics industry.

"XRCC scientists also have developed special conductive 'inks' that can be used to print transistor components," states Xerox. "The components can be used as driver circuits for displays."

Solid ink

Solid ink is Xerox's alternative to liquid inkjet printing and traditional toner. The technology, which has a crayon-like texture and sits in a solid wax form at room temperature, doesn't require cartridges.

Because the ink melts within the machine and uses a quartz crystal to generate very small droplets at slightly above room temperature, the droplets don't move very far and give you very nice, round spots, said Peter Kazmaier, manager of New Materials Design at XRCC.

Xerox recently developed second-generation solid ink technology for its ColorQube multifunction printers, which feature colour printing speeds up to 85 pages per minute and a four print head design that totals over 3,500 ink nozzles.

XRCC estimates customers can save about 60 per cent of their colour printing costs with a ColorQube machine, which makes colour less expensive to work with and requires fewer replacement parts.

"Solid ink performs really, really well when you are working with rougher papers, so you can get almost the same image quality with a cheap paper, a recycled paper, on this machine than you can with a much more expensive, high quality paper," said Kazmaier.

Solid ink technology has several environmentally-conscious benefits, such as using nine per cent less lifecycle energy, producing ten per cent fewer greenhouse gases and generating 90 per cent less supplies waste than traditional laser printing.

Cured solid ink

Building off its solid ink technology, Xerox has invented a cured solid ink that hardens under ultraviolet light and sticks to nearly any surface. The technology has big implications for packaging by allowing printing on non-porous materials such as plastics and foils as well as heavily porous materials like corrugated cardboard.

This offering is different from anything else on the market now, said Michele Chrétien, project leader for UV-Curable Solid Ink at XRCC. "We have something that our customers could do things with that probably we haven't thought of yet," she said.

Ultra low-melt toner

Xerox has expanded upon its Emulsion Aggregation (EA) toner, which was introduced over ten years ago and holds over 300 patents, with an ultra low-melt version that fuses to paper at 45 degrees Fahrenheit lower temperature.

"Our goal was to get to higher speed colour printing at the same time as using less energy," said Patricia Burns, laboratory manager for Materials Synthesis and Characterization at XRCC.

The new Ultra Low-Melt EA Toner retains all of the benefits of the original EA toner, which features smaller particles that improve image quality and require less toner resulting in more prints per cartridge, she pointed out.

The technology is available in Xerox's 700 Digital Colour Press and expected to roll out to other desktop printer, high-end MFP and high-speed commercial colour press models in the future.

The Fourth Of July and the American Way - Wal*Mart

July 4, 2008 -

Celebrate the 4th - go buy something, go sell something, anything...just like Wal*Mart...

I was disparately seeking a timely and interesting subject for a Fourth of July post - and two of the sites I visit most, provided me with WAL*MART.

Cory Smith's "I love Walmart but I hate them too." post resonated with me as well as Ken Stewart's Global-nomics At Work In Your Backyard. Excellent work, gentlemen!

But I think this all started over here. A great site mixing Technology with Politics(YIKES!) I love the mix, I love the argument - Tsudohnimh is the author, go check it out.

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You may ask, "What in the world does Wal*Mart have to do with Managed Print Services, Edgeline, or printing?"

Good question. On this blog, we talk specifically about printing - but in a "galactic" sense, I am really talking about the application of technology in the business world and the impact/results of that application.

So how did Wal*Mart get so big? The answer, my friend, is through the application of technology - something we Americans do quite well and should be more proud of.(U!S!A!)

History Lesson - Back to the Future

Do you remember Mr. Kresge? No?

Ok, to be fair, I know of the Kresge name because I grew up in his "back yard" and the library at my University had his name on it. But Sam owes Sebastian everything - and Sam knows it.

"Sebastian Spering Kresge opened a modest five-and-dime store in downtown Detroit...and changed the entire landscape of retailing. The store that Kresge built has evolved into an empire of more than 1,500 stores and an Internet presence that reaches millions of customers...

"When Kresge opened his first store in 1899, he sold everything for 5 and 10 cents. The low prices appealed to shoppers and allowed him to expand to 85 stores in 1912, with annual sales of more than $10 million..." - 

sound familiar?

Microsoft and OpenAI's Partnership: The AI-mazing Comeback Story of the Century

In a recent development, Microsoft is emerging as a major player in the field of artificial intelligence, thanks to its partnership with OpenAI. 

1. Looks like Microsoft is finally making a comeback and taking the lead in the AI game, thanks to their partnership with OpenAI. This is a huge win for the company and it's great to see them innovating and pushing the boundaries in technology.
2. The integration of ChatGPT into Bing has the potential to give Google a run for their money in the search engine game, which is exciting for consumers and businesses alike. It's about time we have some competition in the space.
3. It's clear that Microsoft is not going to repeat the same mistakes it made in the past by missing out on new trends like social and mobile. They're being proactive and aggressive in their approach to AI and it's paying off.

Balancing the Benefits of AI with Data Privacy Concerns

The rapid success of the language model ChatGPT, developed by OpenAI, has raised concerns about data privacy. The tool requires massive amounts of data to function and improve, and the company fed it 300 billion words, including personal information obtained without consent. 

This data collection violates privacy, especially when data is sensitive and can identify individuals and their locations. 

Risky Ai: The Darkness of Digital Brains

In a recent episode of the Joe Rogan Show, dated December 19, 2023, Aza Raskin and Tristan Harris, luminaries in the tech realm and co-founders of the Center for Humane Technology, engaged in a conversation that peeled back the layers of open source artificial intelligence (AI). 

"In the context of office technology and copiers, the revelations shared by Raskin and Harris carry profound implications. The sophisticated AI systems that power modern copiers and office technology are not immune to the risks associated with open source vulnerabilities. The potential for these technologies to fall into the wrong hands, coupled with their application in nefarious activities, poses a significant threat to businesses relying on advanced technological infrastructures."

Another Case for Chaining AI: Ex-AI Googler, Dr. Hinton

 'The Godfather of AI’ Quits Google and Warns of Danger Ahead

Source: The New York Times

Date: May 1, 2023

“I console myself with the normal excuse: If I hadn’t done it, somebody else would have.” - Hinton

Greg's Words

One of the AI pioneers from Google resigned and is speaking up about the dangers of AI.  Another one.  Like others, he is concerned that false information will be spread throughout the Universe at the hands of that dastardly, Modern Day Prometheus, artificial intelligence.

This coming from an ex-Googler is a bit ironic as Google is the King of steering content regardless of truth or falsehood - sponsored gets the top left position.

The list grows;  CRE CxOs, bank Presidents, Hollywood writers, graphic designers, musicians, and academics charging the line for more AI 'regulation'.

Nope.

"AI ἀναρχία" Now.

Enjoy our summary. For an alternative take on the New York Times report, go here.

Key highlights:

• Dr. Geoffrey Hinton, an AI pioneer, resigns from Google to speak freely about the potential dangers of AI.
• Hinton's immediate concern is the spread of false information online and the potential for AI to replace jobs.
• He suggests that global regulation may be necessary to prevent a dangerous AI race between tech giants.

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The Poly Crisis and its Impact on the Office Technology Industry

The global pandemic has brought about major changes to the way we work, including the shift toward remote work. But it's not just remote work that has been impacted by the poly crisis - the office technology industry has also seen significant changes.

Here are three key highlights of the impact the poly crisis has had on office technology:

A "Polycrisis" is a concatenation of shocks that generate crises that trigger crises in other systems, making the combined effect far worse than the sum of its parts.

DOTC 2022 Beyond the Internet: The Evolution of Global Connectivity

The Death of the Internet and Other Ramblings...

DOTC, 2022 remastered.

The original article was written in 2022. I've fed it to the LLM in the sky and asked to rewrite and incorporate its suggestions.

Enjoy. GW

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Executive Summary:

1. As we approach a new era of technological singularity, there are several indicators suggesting the demise of the Internet, including the shift towards cloud-based services, increasing privacy concerns, the diminishing relevance of traditional internet addresses, and the rise of Bio/Nanotechnology and direct device-to-device communication.
2. The evolution of technology is characterized by cycles of expansion and contraction, with the next expansion anticipated to move from the cloud to the human, leading to a global, person-to-person network.
3. The future may see a world where everything is interconnected through solar-powered, self-replicating, nano-bio-bots, rendering the concept of servers redundant as each individual and object becomes its own server, communicating directly with others.

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H2T: Humanizing Healthcare Technology

2014

"Humanizing Healthcare Technology"(H2T) is a rallying call from a minority of professionals in the healthcare niche.  "Kindred spirits" evangelizing the transformation of healthcare into a more 'human' approach - sounds odd until you hear the stories.  Don't doctors deliver bad news in a compassionate manner, empathize with each patient and provide conversations filled with hope all the time?

FlexAppeal: How Flexible Work Policies Keep Us Connected and Energized

Bend it like a pro: Staying flexible keeps burnout at bay and teams in sync

The latest report from Future Forum is out, Future Forum Pulse.  This winter snapshot of the state of the workplace talks about employee burnout, how investing in technology impacts employee relationships, and much more.

The report is available, here and focuses on flexibility as a driver for employee satisfaction and burnout.  Technology is obviously a determiner as is geography.

I've summarized some of the content, with the assistance of GPT4, here for you, dear reader.

The study supports ideas we've known to be true for three years and beyond; happy employees make for good employees and more productivity resulting in a deeper corporate culture and growing profits.

Enjoy.

__________

In recent years, the landscape of work has evolved dramatically, with flexible work arrangements becoming increasingly crucial for employee satisfaction, engagement, and productivity. A notable trend, first observed in August 2022, has persisted, showing that flexible workers—those able to adjust their work locations—are more likely or equally likely to feel connected to their immediate teams compared to their fully in-office counterparts. Moreover, these workers experience a stronger connection to their direct managers and their company's values.

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The Death of the Internet and Other Ramblings...

The following content was originally published on April 11, 2014, and although extreme, I think it aged well.

Inspired by the Johnny Depp movie, Transcendence.  For me, we are on the Edge of the Singularity or Ultimate Convergence.  The transition will be immediate - from "off" to "on", like bits, from "0" to "1".  The singularity will occur in an instant. Sure there will be warnings, there have been for decades, but when it comes, it will be an institutional

This month marks the 25th anniversary of the addressing vehicle for the internet, the "World Wide Web". The internet, as it is defined, has been around 40 years, created in 1973.  The thing is, I don't see the internet surviving another 40, let alone 10 years.

No really, I'm calling it, we are witnessing the very beginning of the Death of the Internet.

Indicators:

Tigerpaw’s Women in Technology: Creating an Environment for Careers to Thrive

Executive Summary:

1. Tigerpaw Software showcases an above-average number of women technologists through their commitment to diversity, career growth, work-life balance, mentorship, and education, thereby cultivating an inclusive and thriving environment.
2. The organization employs diversity-focused recruitment practices to ensure the hiring of the most qualified individuals, regardless of personal attributes, which has led to more women in tech and leadership roles.
3. Amid challenges faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, Tigerpaw stood out as a "family-first" employer, providing flexible working conditions to ensure work-life balance, and continues to encourage personal growth and professional development through mentorship and educational opportunities.

Architect reflected, “I had 2-3 mentors that were wonderful. It was the best on-the-job training I could possibly have asked for. It accelerated my learning, and I was able to jump in with both feet.” - Shelly Miller, Database Architect 

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Are You Selling Copiers & Office Tech to Law Firms? Not For Long

AI Is Changing the Legal Industry

“It has the capacity to reshape the practice of law,” Mr. Villasenor said. Previous waves of automation mostly affected blue-collar jobs in industries like manufacturing, or back-office roles that required many calculations, such as accounting or mortgage processing. 

Rapid developments in AI could pose threats to the type of work performed in white-collar professions, like the practice of law..." - WSJ

Greg's Words

See, I told you so.  One of the most paper-intense business models in the history of print is going to someday soon, be inhabited by Chat Agents.

Imagine ChatGPT attached to the Nexus/Lexus databases.  Every judgment, law, regulation, and legal action is at the disposal of savvy prompt-generating Legal Eagles.

• Roll-playing with AI before a trial.
• Digging up every relevant precedence, ever.
• Determining which jury members are the best to accept and reject.
• And mathematically predict outcomes.

This changes everything.

A quick summary of a WSJ article.  Enjoy.

Key highlights:

• Law firms and in-house legal departments are employing AI tools using GPT-4 technology to handle writing and research tasks, traditionally assigned to entry-level lawyers.
• The AI tools are set to revolutionize white-collar jobs, potentially affecting 44% of legal work, as per a Goldman Sachs report.
• Despite AI's promise, there are concerns about uploading sensitive data to cloud-based products and the opacity of AI software.

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Cyber CEOs: The Rise of AI-Assisted Leadership

From scheduling to drafting emails, artificial intelligence is reshaping the corporate world and executive support roles.

Greg's Words

It's happening right now.  AI is eating the world, one process at a time, millions of times a second.

The C-Suite understands that data, reports, and scheduling can be accomplished by the great AI in the Sky.  The administration position is on the path to obscurity. Once the AI in the sky connects with airline, travel, and hotel apps(and the millions of other kinetic applications) the circle will be complete:

Everything from ordering lunch, delivering groceries, booking flights, and getting tickets for the play/game/concert will be handled by our unique and personal assistant - The AI.

Imagine the myriad of other jobs and positions that will disintegrate - office jobs.  Jobs that once typed documents, then printed, copied, digitized, stored, and moved data by "hand".  Gone.

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The Uncertain Future of Technology: Google & Facebook Will Not Survive.

It is difficult to predict the future of technology with certainty, as it is constantly evolving and new companies and technologies can emerge and disrupt the market. However, it is possible to make educated guesses about the direction in which technology is headed and to consider the potential challenges and opportunities that different companies and technologies may face.

One argument for the idea that Google, Facebook, and Twitter may not be a part of the future of technology is that these companies are reliant on business models that may not be sustainable in the long term. For example, Google and Facebook rely on targeted advertising as their primary source of revenue, which has come under increasing scrutiny due to concerns about privacy and the manipulation of public opinion. Twitter's business model is based on the sale of advertising and the collection of user data, which may also be vulnerable to changing regulations and consumer preferences.

The Land of Artificial Intelligence: Where SEO Goes to Die

Welcome to the future of search - where ChatGPT leads the way and SEO is a thing of the past.

Welcome to the Future.

This is why Google is freaking out and the behemoth, Microsoft, dropped ten billion dollars in the lap of OpenAI - Artificial Intelligence is changing the way we work, access information and Live and the adoption curve is a straight line up.

"There is blood in the water."

Artificial Intelligence, or Augmented Intelligence, is transforming the way we access information and work, rendering traditional search engines and websites obsolete. The impact of AI adoption is causing giants like Google and Microsoft to invest heavily in the technology, with OpenAI receiving a ten-billion-dollar investment from Microsoft.

The future of the PC is often attributed to  

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers."

Thomas J. Watson, Jr., the former CEO of IBM, 1971

Supposedly.

Exploring the Risks and Benefits of AI: A Comparison of Star Trek's "The Ultimate Computer" and Today's Advancements

Captain Dunsel

"To reap the rewards of progress and innovation, one must tread with caution, for technology's allure may lead to downfall. The key is to strike a balance, to harness its power while being cognizant of its dangers and taking the necessary steps to prevent them." 

In the Star Trek episode "The Ultimate Computer," the USS Enterprise is chosen to test a new computer system called the M-5, which is designed to run the ship without human intervention. The M-5 is highly advanced, with the ability to make decisions and take actions on its own. However, as the episode progresses, it becomes clear that the computer is malfunctioning and causing the deaths of several crew members.

Similarly, ChatGPT is a highly advanced language model that can generate human-like responses to a wide range of prompts. Like the M-5, ChatGPT is trained on a large dataset of text and has the ability to make decisions and take actions within the realm of language processing. However, it is important to note that ChatGPT is not a sentient being and does not have the ability to cause harm or make decisions that affect the real world.

How the Adult Film Industry Helped Shape Technology as We Know It

Sex sells, but it also inspires: How the adult film industry shaped the tech landscape we know and love.

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Ok - here we go... a walk down memory lane and talk about the good old days of VHS and dial-up internet and porn. 

The adult film industry played a significant role in shaping the technology we use today. From the format wars to online streaming, porn was at the forefront of innovation. 

Today, as we enter the age of AI-based personal assistants, I'm left wondering: how will porn drive the evolution and standards? How'd porn impact tech in the past, and what it could mean for the future of AI.

First, we've been here before.  No matter how evolved one might think the human race is, base desires still drive progress in all things.  There's a coined phrase, "erotic technology impulse".  

John Tierney, a fellow at Columbia University studied the cultural impact of technology, traced the “erotic technological impulse” back at least 27,000 years—among the first clay-fired figures uncovered from that time were women with enhanced body parts. 

“Sometimes the erotic has been a force driving technological innovation,” Tierney wrote in The New York Times in 1994, “virtually always, from Stone Age sculpture to computer bulletin boards, it has been one of the first uses for a new medium.”

Fascinating.

Selling MPS: This is Why Managed Print Services Providers COULD Have an Edge Over IT.

The title of the post grabbed my attention:

"Why there should be no such thing as an IT project."

"IT is not an island: CIOs reveal the secrets to successful business projects..."

ANALYSIS
How is it that pure IT projects seem destined to fail, and yet technology is clearly key to business?

Mark Samuels canvasses a group CIOs for their views on what barriers there are to IT project success.
"IT projects never really work," says Mike Day, CIO at fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger. That seems like negative talk from a technology chief but there is sound method in the apparent madness..."-----------------------

Madness? Yes.

I can count more EDM and FaxServer projects that ended up on "eternal roll-out" because of the reasons mentioned in this article - so to finally see somebody within the IT world recognize this, I was taken back.

Well, as you know, MPS is simply Business Process Optimization - say it with me, "MPS is BPO...MPS is BPO...MPS is BPO..."

But as long as we can use our laptops out by the pool, I am fine with IT projects, really, I am.