Whereas hundreds of thousands watched the Olympics, celebrating the top of human achievement, Google aired an advert wherein… a father used AI to ghostwrite his daughter’s fan letter to her Olympic hero. In a second that completely encapsulates the tech trade’s toneless obsession with synthetic intelligence, Google managed to strip away the essence of what makes us human: real emotion and connection.

A couple of weeks earlier, a whole lot of traders had gathered in San Francisco for the nation’s largest longevity convention. Essentially the most attention-grabbing takeaway? The longevity market is price $8.3 trillion and ripe for tech-driven disruption.

This contradiction—between Silicon Valley’s misguided AI efforts and the untapped potential of the longevity market—completely illustrates the place the tech trade’s priorities have gone awry. Whereas Google is demonstrating AI’s capacity to imitate human sentimentality, it’s lacking the forest for the timber. The actual innovation, the true potential of AI, lies not in changing human expression, however in enhancing human lives, notably these of our quickly getting older inhabitants. It’s on this market the place AI may have its most profound and significant influence, tackling actual challenges that have an effect on hundreds of thousands of lives each day.

Tech’s obsession with youth is blinding it to the best alternative of our time: our quickly getting older inhabitants. By 2030, all child boomers will probably be over 65, representing 21% of the U.S. inhabitants. This demographic will command a whopping 70% of disposable earnings in America. But Silicon Valley treats this market as if it have been invisible.

Right here’s what sensible traders and entrepreneurs ought to take note of. Think about AI programs that may detect early indicators of cognitive decline, permitting for earlier intervention in illnesses like Alzheimer’s. Or AI-powered exoskeletons that restore mobility to the aged, preserving their independence and high quality of life. Improvements like these may rework hundreds of thousands of lives and save billions in healthcare prices.

We’ve already seen AI algorithms analyze medical knowledge to foretell well being points earlier than they develop into crucial. My startup has constructed AI chatbots that present companionship and cognitive stimulation to remoted seniors, serving to to stop loneliness and dementia. That’s the sort of innovation that may really change the world.

The chance is gigantic, nevertheless it requires a elementary shift in pondering. We have to transfer away from the concept of ​​AI as a alternative for human duties and towards AI as an amplifier of human capabilities. It’s about utilizing expertise to make our lives higher, to not stay our lives for us. And for an getting older inhabitants, that might make all of the distinction on the planet.

For traders and entrepreneurs, this can be a golden alternative. The businesses that efficiently use AI to deal with the challenges of our getting older inhabitants is not going to solely be worthwhile, however may also develop into the billion-dollar tech giants of tomorrow.

However time is of the essence. Day-after-day we waste on frivolous AI purposes is a day wasted making ready for this demographic shift. We should refocus our greatest minds, our most superior applied sciences, and our enterprise capital on fixing these pressing issues.

Right here is my problem to Silicon Valley, traders and fellow entrepreneurs:

Rising up.

Let’s deal with creating AI that serves us all – wrinkles, grey hair and all. Let’s construct applied sciences that don’t simply dazzle us with their capabilities, however that really enhance lives at scale.

Finally, essentially the most invaluable AI received’t be the one that may write essentially the most compelling fan letter. Will probably be the one which helps a grandmother maintain her grandchild once more, or a grandfather develop outdated with dignity in his own residence, or a caregiver get the assist they desperately want.

That’s the AI ​​revolution we should be speaking about. That’s the longer term price investing in. And that’s the problem Silicon Valley wants to deal with earlier than it’s too late.

As a result of finally, that's the place the true innovation – and the true influence – will occur.

Supply: Alan Thornton, Getty Pictures

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