Just before Michael took the floor at the educational corner at m&i Fest, we chatted with him outside the buyer lounge, where an audience of two dozen awaited his presentation. Sporting a pastel-coloured jacket and exuding the eloquence of a seasoned keynote speaker veteran, Michael, armed with decades of industry knowledge, captured the essence of AI and what it brings to event organisers.
Q1: What is GAIN Talks?
GAIN Talks is a global travel and hospitality organisation in the MICE industry, comprising growth advisors and consultancy experts. We help and advise MICE companies on innovation strategies and how they can prioritise and invest intelligently. We provide focus and clarity to our clients in the hospitality and MICE sector.
Q2: Will AI replace journalists and printed press?
In the future, journalists and editorial professionals will be utilising AI technologies, including Google Bard, ChatGPT and other solutions, as a foundation for getting 40% of their work done highly efficiently. However, no technology will ever replace journalists. The intellectual and creative execution will always be highly valued. The drudgery work of journalism, conversely, will be eliminated. It may be more challenging for young journalists to break into the industry.
Q3: Will AI ever match the human emotional capability of writing and thinking creatively?
I don’t see AI entirely reaching that apex, although, in the next five years, it will become a closely held companion. It will understand a writer’s thought processes and style and help create a seamless relationship between technology and people.
Q4: In what way can event organisers implement AI today?
Within the MICE industry, it is all about ideation, design, organisation, confirmation, execution and support. That is where AI can eliminate the drudgery and help human staff refocus on creativity and innovation, thus maximising bandwidth. Imagine taking all the effort used for routine work and repurposing it for novelties and growth.
Q5: Will the need for face-to-face interactions remain, or will we move to virtual worlds?
The platforms for emulating in-person gatherings will only get more immersive and seamless. However, COVID-19 was a great reminder of how impactful interpersonal interactions and meetings are and how great it is to close a deal in person and shake hands. There will never be a technology that replaces human gatherings. Still, hybrid is the future and down the road, events will need to offer hybrid opportunities so delegates can attend online.
“What separates AI from the Metaverse is that artificial intelligence is everywhere, everything, all the time. It is embedded in everything today.”
Q6: Where is AI headed in the next five years?
I am not a futurist, so I can say the future is now. It is hard to predict where it’s going to go. The question is where will it evolve in two years. The entrenchment of AI is already immense, and in two years, it will be about optimising interaction and engagement before, during and post-event. For instance, In real time, AI will notify delegates whether they should attend a different meeting or part of the programme to maximise their efficiency and, ultimately, help them optimise their schedule.
Q7: Do you see any parallels between AI and the Metaverse?
I am a great proponent, user and advocate of VR and AR technologies. Metaverse, schmetaverse; it is a naming convention that is dead. On the other hand, spatial computing, VR and hybrid events are never going to go away. The ability to do reckons for future events is a massive market for immersive VR experiences. Spatial computing never went away and has a bright future in all industries. What separates AI from the Metaverse is that artificial intelligence is everywhere, everything, all the time. It is embedded in everything today and permeates all interactions, data and strategies for implementation, workforce, etc. It is entrenched in society.
Q8: AI in five words?
AI is the epitome of interacting and intelligently organising everything always.
Find out more about GAIN Talks here.
