History shows us that new technological milestones which have the potential to bring about real change are usually accompanied by a, sometimes alarmist, public debate. This was already the case with the spread of newspapers and magazines in the 18th century and with the introduction of the railroad for passenger transport in the 19th century, now it is the case with ChatGPT and advancements in ML and AI.

Time and again, the term disruptive technology is used to refer to such a new milestone in technological progress. Often, however, the term is used inflationary, and mainly by business-minded and marketing-savvy entrepreneurs. Rarely are the products or services mentioned in the same breath real disruptions. ChatGPT may be different.

Because such technologies, which provoke a collective change of mind, a great self-questioning, and imitation, are not self-promoters’ intention. They are real and have a very direct influence on our actions, our thinking, and can cause the upheaval of an entire industry. They reach the very core of our collective experience and existence. But by definition, these disruptors are not single technologies, but rather processes.

We are currently experiencing the beginning of such a process, the beginning of radical change caused by the advancement of key technologies in the field of artificial intelligence and machine learning. The leading example of this new wave of technologies, of course, is ChatGPT by OpenAI, an extremely user-oriented exemplification of artificial intelligence, that for many, marks a turning point in the advancement of artificial intelligence or even a milestone on our way to artificial general intelligence (AGI). ChatGPT has surprised even veteran experts and has shaken their confidence in predicting future developments. 

But today, such technologies are not only visible to experienced AI and ML specialists, but to complete laymen, and especially to large tech companies, which sense their opportunity to be at the core of the next big thing and at the heart of the next megatrend. While this is of course driven by monetary incentives and business decisions, it is at its core about staying ahead of the curve and becoming part of and shaping a technological revolution that will change the lives of generations to come.

And these developments are not happening in the tech bubble exclusively. Mainstream news outlets have been reporting on exciting but also concerning developments in artificial intelligence for some time now. And even though you can accuse some of them of jumping on a hype train, the wheels are not only in motion, but moving billions of dollars, resources, and people in a very short time:

Microsoft is investing $10 billion in OpenAI, Google’s parent company Alphabet is bringing back its two founders, and Meta is shifting more and more budget toward their AI department. Artificial intelligence has long ceased to be a technical gimmick of hermitical developers or even the pipedream of a generation of science fiction-influenced entrepreneurs. Artificial intelligence is currently electrifying an entire industry and, beyond that, modern societies (not to mention the impact on education and other public sectors). 

This dynamic inspires us to further develop our ML Conference as a space where like-minded people can exchange ideas. Not only to advance their careers in the field of AI and ML but to push themselves, their projects, or their company to the edge of innovation, to develop great and practical innovations that can change the course of a business or redefine strategic goals. 

What we see exemplified in ChatGPT is a collection of different technologies, strategies, and models that can be applied in almost every department, no matter how mundane. Of course, ChatGPT is more than the sum of simple and available technologies. But at the same time, it is far from being a magical black box accessible only to a select few. As with many key technologies, success is not only reserved for the brilliant few minds of our time, but also for the people who work on implementing them in everyday areas, who embrace the challenges ahead of us and tap into the seemingly inexhaustible possibilities to change our lives for the better. 

Sufficient application of ML and AI can range from fine-tuning models by ML developers to prompt engineering, the art of designing on-target text inputs that drive your machine learning model to optimal performance. With prompt engineering, the goal is to develop the perfect inputs to deliver the results your application or business needs. People implementing those techniques, fine-tuning models, and developing new and creative ways to work with new technologies are the real disruptors.

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With MLCon, we do not only want to do our part in this democratization of technologies. We want to introduce you to the most essential technologies, methods, and tools that can move you, your team and your company forward. We will help pave the way for responsible AI use and through workshops, sessions, and talks from our experts, help spread all currently available information on the topic.

The question of the future will not be how much of a part an AI plays in a particular product or service. The question of the future will not be how certain aspects of our daily work can be abbreviated or simplified through the clever use of various technologies. The question of the future will be which tasks will be taken over by AI completely, how that shapes our society, and what that means for us as humans.

Be part of this exchange with leading experts at the heart of current AI developments, at MLCon Munich 2023.