Chapter 8: Double Edged Sword

 Its important to understand how innovation can be both a good and bad thing based on the situation and context. 

To do that, we need to talk about what the World Wide Web did to society when it was released to the public. The word we are going to focus on is "disintermediation". Disintermediation is when middlemen are removed, letting producers and consumers deal with each other directly. When the World Wide Web became a public commodity, it allowed individuals to create spaces for consumers to directly access information about products, services, or opportunities without relying on others to help them. This was good for the consumers, but a terrible situation for those who relied on others needing help. 

Another phenomenon occurred called "convergence of technologies ," where multiple technological innovations came together to create a type of business or product that normally wouldn't be possible to make. A great example of this is iTunes, which came about because of the creation of portable devices, compressed audio files, and ecommerce platforms. For some, this was a fantastic product that allowed users to listen to music on the go, purchase their favorite music, all with an easy to use interface. 

In this day and age, Machine Learning and AI are the greatest new innovations to hit the technological world. If you are someone trying to be the hottest thing on the innovation market, you are probably considering adding some sort of AI aspect to your innovation to match competition. Its a slippery slope given that AI could replace aspects of a job that others would not be keen to let go, but on the flip side, your innovation could bring about new abilities that someone would love to incorporate into their business. 

Lets explore how to bring AI and ML into the workforce, and business world, while maintaining a positive outcome for both parties. As discussed on previous chapters, there's no denying that AI will cause both a disintermediation phenomenon, and convergence. A great example of this will probably happen within the medical field, as technology and AI start advancing, there will be a shrinkage of certain medical jobs. We could see AI taking over medical positions such as LPN's and CNA's due to the emergence of AI robots able to complete the smaller tasks patients need. AI within the 3D modeling world could allow users to take a 3D scan of their body, limiting the need for scheduled appointments. An AI system could run routine physical appointments through a virtual system, removing the demand for more PA's and family practice doctors. With less demand for doctors, this could lead to less funding for medical education, and less wages for doctors and nurses. At the same time, with these new emerging technologies, we could see a positive increase in patient care due to robots providing exceptional care. We could also see an increase in diseases being caught by AI's systems that are specifically designed to catch even the smallest changes in a person's body, whereas human doctors are prone to error on occasion. When looking at it from this perspective, innovation can absolutely become a double edged sword.

That is why it is up to us innovators to push for education on AI, create positions that work in tangent with new technologies and AI, and overall, design innovations that assist the community rather than sending it crashing down. As innovators, we hold power to help society for the better. Each innovation must be carefully crafted with the users in mind, and designed to benefit society as best we can. Remember, innovation can be a double edged sword, but when the sword is swung correctly, it can be beneficial for most.

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