Problems Vs Solutions

Common advice for founders and other problem solvers is to fall in love with a problem, not a solution. This is meant to keep people from building "solutions" that nobody wants. These days, that means avoiding the temptation to shove AI into just about everything.

On the other hand, I find this advice incomplete. It's solid when technological progress has been slow and steady. But when novel technology arises, the game changes. You will want to take a really close look at new tools and ask: Where could I apply this?

Think about other monumental technological achievements, like electricity. It was so different from everything that came before that it made perfect sense to ask: What are all the marvellous things we could do with this?

Same with AI. It really is a monumental shift in what computers are capable of doing. Why not brainstorm a long list of ways to apply this in our lives and business? The initial advice, to avoid obsessing over the cool tech of the solution rather than the actual problem, is still sound. Once you have your brainstormed list of AI use cases, ask critically whether it tackles a real problem: Does it cost you time, money, energy, or peace of mind? Have you tried solving it before but ran into challenges that AI could overcome? If not, move on, because a use case that's not for a painful problem isn't a real use case. But if yes, dig deeper and define what "solved" would look like, and then go try solving it (or hit reply and chat with us about solving it).