Are you using AI?

So far, I am only using AI to summarize documents.

At my former work, they are using it to see patterns in the field service work they do and correlate it to certain equipment models. They also use AI to help create the quieries and even structure the database they are using. They don't trust the code completely, but it gives them a direction of where to look. They started out with an AI bot making cold calls to potential customers. I don't know if they are still using that service.

One of my teacher friends uses Gemini to help create lesson plans with age appropriate wording. He uses it as a starting point and then edits both the structure and content. It makes great sense to me as getting started is the hardest part – to me.

I am a heavy user of AI.

What do you mainly use AI for?

I use it both for work (have a paid subscription) and I use it for personal stuff too.

Has AI changed how you work or solve problems?

Definitely. It has become my "personal side kick". I see it as my "intern" lots of knowledge and little experience. It has certainly solved problems much quicker than I could ever do. Simply because it can read a 300 page document in seconds.

You certainly improve your touch typing skills as you type a heck of a lot with all the prompts.

What do you find most useful about AI?

It's comprehension. It's ability to summarise large documents. It is pretty good at coding, especially when asked to write software libraries.

What still feels frustrating, risky, or unclear?

AI reminds me of a hospital consultant. Once they make their mind up about something it is nearly impossible to get them to change their point of view.

AI makes mistakes, for sure, so treat it as fallible and all is well.

The worry is that we become beholden to it. It's like asking a senior manager to go and do the technicians work as they're ill. You'll struggle to get back into it.

Commercially it's going to get much more expensive.

Are there any AI tools or use cases you think are especially useful?

At the moment these AI tools are all token and very slow. I found an antenna selection tool the other day. It made part selection much easier and came up with a great option. But it was slow.

I much prefer the chatGPT, Claude and Google Gemini's to tools.

I have not had any reason to use AI, plus I am not a fan of AI as a technology.

Just too many unanswered questions about verification and validation of its reliability.

Yes, it is now faster, but faster garbage is still garbage.

We've only just started tinkering with AI to see if it might be useful for our business. So far it is more just a request to the teams to see if might be useful. 

I mainly use AI for quick questions and answers.  Recently I started to learn Autodesk Fusion... and rather than use tutorials I asked ChatGPT how to do various tasks.

So far AI is hopeless at designing circuits.

I use it to learn business concepts and create link between those concepts. A lot of time I even use it to learn chemistry concepts. If I don't find solution to it. I post it on element14 community.

I use AI sporadically, mostly to do a deeper dive when a search engine is not providing an adequate result. I don't use generative AI to create content much, although I sometimes use it to create or edit and an image or create royalty free background music. I am starting to use it to get started with software projects - the basic software structure of a program.

Certainly not using AI.

I keep reading about how wonderful it is and how it will design all my circuits, write all my code etc.

And then I try it (again) ........

Last attempt was the AI help engine available with Maple (paid for software for doing Maths).

It (like always with AI) wrote  a nice looking chunk of code that didn't work.

It was moderately useful as a help engine for explaining commands but not very good.

I read about wonderful results but never see any of them published - I wonder why.

MK

Kinda have AI shoved down my throat when doing Google searches, I guess the cost for free services is training the AI. 

I do like the AI summary as I search for specific things I cant fully remember, python methods and libraries, etc.

I do not trust any AI to give a fully correct answer, especially if I ask vague questions.

The different AIs are better at some things than others, just like people.  Flynn, there is no MCP ....yet, but its coming.