Will AI Completely Transform Our Use of Computers?

Last November, I received a newsletter from Bill Gates titled “AI is about to completely change how we use computers.”

Gates begins his letter with a prediction:

“Five years from now, you won’t have to use different apps for different tasks. You’ll simply tell your device, in everyday language, what you want to do—whether it’s drafting a document, making a spreadsheet, scheduling a meeting, analyzing data, sending an email, or even buying movie tickets.“

Gates dives deeper into the topic in his blog post.

Revolution in Computing

Gates discusses the revolutionary impact of AI on computing, comparing it to the transformative effects of mobile phones and the Internet.

Text-based bots are just the beginning; AI agents will significantly change our online and offline lives.

Agents will be smarter, proactive, and capable of accomplishing tasks across applications, improving over time by learning user preferences and behavior patterns.

Democratizing software development

“To create a new app or service, you won’t need to know how to write code or do graphic design. You’ll just tell your agent what you want. It will be able to write the code, design the look and feel of the app, create a logo, and publish the app to an online store,” Gates explains, even though he stated previously that we won’t need apps in the future.

OpenAI’s GPTs allow anyone to create custom versions of ChatGPT that combine instructions, extra knowledge, and any combination of skills. “Anyone can easily build their own GPT—no coding is required.”

Gates reminds us that the development of personal agents will require new types of databases to capture the nuances of individual interests and relationships while maintaining privacy.

The impact on the construction sector

Gates mentions several business areas that the AI agents will impact. He does not talk about construction specifically, but you can imagine several use cases in which agents can boost productivity and enhance learning.

Any work done at the desk will be affected, but also fieldwork.

The ACTOR project, in which I’m involved, developed automated coordination between construction actors using AI. Agents would be a perfect way to expand these capabilities to offer personalized instructions on the jobsite.

The question is how to interact with agents in a challenging environment.

On a construction site, you can use mobile devices and AR headsets, but Gates predicts that earbuds will be the first breakthrough in interacting with the agents.

Profound questions

If the agents will change our lives as fundamentally as Gates envisions, many questions arise. He mentions technical issues and questions about privacy and data ownership. But the most profound question relates to work.

“Imagine that agents become so good that everyone can have a high quality of life without working nearly as much,” Gates wonders. “In a future like that, what would people do with their time? Would anyone still want to get an education when an agent has all the answers?”

Gates consoles us by stating we’re far from that point. Still, that’s a scenario worth discussing.