Companies Are Just a Graph of Algorithms

Summary

I think the reason so many people don't understand how big AI is going to be is that they don't understand that everything is an algorithm.Specifically, they don't realize that companies are just a collection of algorithms.What do I mean by that?Well, let's say that your company takes pictures, cleans them up, stylizes them, and adds a caption—which customers can then download in a large format. Let's call the company Memories.The company started in the early 2000's, founded by an artist/photographer, and here's how it works:The user uploads the best quality digital image that you have of the photo, or sends it to the companyMemories receives it and does a high-quality scan—checking quality and repairing any damage using old-school photography techniques + PhotoshopThen they stylize the image in some kind of way, like Retro, Cinematic, Family, whatever—and add a captionThen they let you download the image or they send you prints.Simple enough, and for anyone into computers you will recognize this as a series of steps, aka—an algorithm.Explainability is the new currency.Also, each one of these steps is an algorithm itself, just like the full set of algorithms. So you could break the Upload step into its own piece.And you can keep going. Each of those steps can be broken down even further—it's algorithms all the way down.But the sending and processing pieces aren't the only flows that make up the business. You also have:Setting up the companyHiring employeesPaying taxesPaying for infrastructureDoing marketingDoing supportEtc.As you continue the process, you start seeing a full picture of all the different pieces that make up the business.I think of this as a graph of algorithms.I use the word graph because it allows me to think of the relationships between the different components and describe them using an action—such as send to or receive, or whatever.Transparency is AI fuel This process of breaking down processes of any kind—and especially for an entire business—is...