Every other week, some new tech guru—or, worse, a wannabe tech guru—claims that artificial intelligence is on its deathbed. They say the age of AI is over. Move on. Nothing to see here. These prophets of doom, armed with half-baked theories and clickbait headlines, want us to believe that the most significant technological revolution of the 21st century is fizzling out like cheap soda on a Sunday afternoon.

I just read the most enlightening LinkedIn post from Linas Beliunas, who’s been writing about AI for ages. Here it is (emojis are his, not mine):

This is huge! Swedish FinTech giant Klarna is using AI to halve its workforce 😳

"Our AI assistant now performs the work of 700 employees, reducing the average resolution time from 11 minutes to just 2, while maintaining the same customer satisfaction scores as human agents," - Klarna CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski wrote in his letter to shareholders.

But here comes the crazy part.

The financial impact of these AI-driven efficiencies is substantial.

In their latest H1 2024 financials, Klarna just reported that average revenue per employee has surged by 73% over the past 12 months alone, from SEK 4 million to SEK 7 million 😳

As an effect, this productivity gain has allowed Klarna to reduce its workforce from 5,000 to 3,800 over the past year alone through natural attrition, with plans to potentially shrink further to around 2,000 employees in the coming years.

It's now clear that this Bloomberg interview Siemiatkowski did a few months ago wasn't just hype - Klarna is walking the walk.

AI is eating FinTech.

AI isn't just alive and kicking—it's running marathons, winning gold medals, and then inventing new sports just for fun.

The Current State of AI: Alive and Thriving

Let's start with the basics: AI isn't dead. In fact, it's doing quite the opposite. It's surviving and, yes, thriving. The technology has advanced rapidly over the last decade, becoming as ubiquitous as Wi-Fi. Every industry worth its salt—from healthcare to finance, retail to transportation—is dipping its toes in the AI pool. And those that aren't? Well, they're just waiting to be disrupted out of existence.

Consider this: AI is now helping doctors detect diseases once thought to be the sole province of seasoned specialists. Financial institutions leverage AI to detect fraud faster than a hedge fund manager can say "insider trading." And in case you've missed it, autonomous vehicles are no longer just the stuff of science fiction; they're an actual thing now, zipping around streets, albeit in controlled environments. If that's what dying looks like, I can't wait to see AI's idea of a full-blown resurrection.

Misconceptions and the Usual Litany of Criticisms

But alas, the naysayers won't be deterred. They always find something to gripe about. "AI is overhyped!" they shout. "It’s stuck in a perpetual loop of failure!" they lament. "It’s a threat to humanity!" they cry as they furiously type away on their smartphones powered by—you guessed it—AI algorithms.

But mainly, they can’t wait until NVDA stock falls out of bed.

“Short this!” - Jensen Huang (under his breath)

Let's take a closer look at these so-called criticisms, shall we?

First up is the claim that AI is all hype and no substance. According to these folks, AI is just another overblown fad, like pet rocks or bell-bottom jeans. They love to point to high-profile AI failures, like chatbots that go rogue or self-driving cars that don't drive all that safely yet.

Sure, there have been setbacks. But newsflash: that's how innovation works. If every technological breakthrough were flawless from the get-go, we'd all be commuting in flying cars by now. AI has its challenges, but it's far from a failure.

Then, there's the argument that AI is stuck in a perpetual cycle of failure. This one is a real hoot. Failure isn’t a bug; it’s a feature of progress. Remember when the Wright brothers crashed their planes? Or when Edison burned through ten thousand materials before figuring out the lightbulb? Failure is just success training in the gym.

Counterarguments: AI is Just Getting Started

Now, let's turn the tables and bring in some facts—real ones, not the kind cooked up in some basement think tank. AI is not just alive; it’s experiencing a growth spurt that would make teenagers blush. Recent breakthroughs in AI technology are nothing short of extraordinary. Take, for instance, generative AI—those clever little algorithms that can create new content from scratch. Whether writing poetry, composing music, or generating images that make you question reality, generative AI proves that machines can be just as creative (and sometimes as nonsensical) as humans. AI's rapid growth and potential should make us all feel optimistic and excited about the future.

But it doesn't stop there. AI has become a cornerstone in natural language processing, with algorithms now capable of understanding and responding to human speech in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago. Remember when you had to shout at Siri or Alexa just to get a weather update? Those days are behind us. Today’s AI can decipher accents, understand context, and even crack a joke—though, admittedly, its sense of humor still needs a bit of work.

And let's remember machine learning, the bread and butter of AI. Algorithms are getting smarter by the minute, processing vast datasets and uncovering insights that humans would take centuries to figure out. Machine learning transforms industries and redefines what's possible, from predicting market trends to diagnosing diseases.

So, Why Does the "Death of AI" Narrative Persist?

With all this progress, you might wonder why some people are so eager to declare AI dead. Well, it's simple. Fear and sensationalism sell. No one wants to read a headline that says, "AI Continues to Grow Steadily and Will Eventually Solve Many of Humanity's Problems, But It’s Going to Take Time, and There Will Be Some Bumps Along the Way." No, people want drama. They want the fall of Rome, the bursting of the dot-com bubble, or the next big villain to blame for the world's ills. And AI, with its rapid advancements and occasional missteps, makes for a perfect scapegoat.

There’s also a fundamental misunderstanding of what AI is and isn't. Some folks still think AI is a monolithic, singular entity—like Skynet plotting to overthrow humanity. AI is a collection of technologies with strengths and weaknesses, working together (and sometimes against each other) to solve specific problems. It’s not one size fits all; it's more like a Swiss Army knife with different tools for different tasks—horses for courses, as they say.

And then there's the fear factor. Let’s face it: AI is spooky. It’s the ultimate boogeyman for a tech-obsessed world. It can do almost magical things, and humans have a long history of fearing what we don't understand. But just because AI is powerful and mysterious doesn't mean it's on the brink of collapse or rebellion. Remember, we’re the ones programming these systems. If anything, AI's so-called "death" would reflect our shortcomings, not some apocalyptic failure of technology.

The Future of AI: A More Nuanced Perspective

Instead of declaring AI dead or overhyped, how about we take a more nuanced perspective? Yes, AI has its challenges. There are ethical considerations to navigate, biases to address, and plenty of bugs to fix. But that's true of any transformative technology. The printing press had its critics, especially when it came to printing The Bible in the local vernacular. So does the internet, especially from governments who don’t like their secrets posted on the wall for all to see. And now, so does AI.

The future of AI is neither a utopia nor a dystopia—it's a work in progress. It’s a road with twists, turns, bumps, and occasional potholes. But it's a road worth traveling. AI has the potential to revolutionize how we live, work, and interact with the world around us. It can improve our lives, jobs, and futures (especially when it comes to diseases humans couldn’t hope to manage without it). But it will require careful stewardship and oversight.

Wrap Up

So, the next time you hear someone proclaiming the death of AI, do yourself a favor: roll your eyes, shake your head, and maybe even chuckle a little. AI isn't dead; it's far from it. It’s evolving, growing, and, yes, occasionally stumbling. But isn't that true of all of us? In the grand scheme of things, AI is just getting started. And if you ask me, the future looks pretty darn exciting.

AI’s death is one funeral that won’t happen soon.