AI and Fear of Missing Out

Marketing Viewpoint by Ruth Winett

Is AI Just another "Disruptive Innovation"?

AI has been adopted at unprecedented rates following the release of ChatGPT on November 30, 2022. However, AI companies, like past innovators, often face challenges, such as the following:

What is it? What can AI do? Who needs it? When IBM introduced its PC in 1981, We noticed that IBM's ads targeted home users, but the early adopters were businesses. Consumers did not want or need PCs. Plus, IBM’s PCs cost $1,565, about $4,500 today.*

Uncertain impact: AI generated information could be dangerous/illegal/or incorrect. AI might create chaos by eliminating jobs and taking over human life. When interviewed about a new technology that identified power plant maintenance issues, plant staff told me the technology would miss significant problems. Mainly, they feared they would lose their jobs.

Missing infrastructure or missing supporting technology: Today there are not enough data centers to support AI and not enough sources of power to support the data centers. In the eighties, PCs powered by the new 80286 chip struggled to find a market: The PCs lacked sufficient memory, as well as the right software to support the powerful new chip

Finances/return on investment: What will it cost to participate? When can we expect a reasonable return on investment? Amazon was founded in 1994 and was not profitable until 2003. AI companies will also wait years to become profitable.

Unchartered territory: No guardrails. Who’s in charge? Cell phone service providers need access to spectrum or "invisible airwaves."*. First, the government assigned spectrum; then it tried lotteries. Since 1994 spectrum has been auctioned. Elon Musk and Governor Gavin Newsome are advocating for regulations to control AI technology.

Fear and Fear of Missing Out (FOMO): How do you use AI ? Is it good for our business? Should we invest in AI? What are our competitors doing? Staples and Walmart resisted e-commerce but eventually realized that their customers were buying from online merchants.

While AI has experienced many of the same challenges as other new technologies, AI appears to be more disruptive, much sooner, and on a global scale. Some companies are forcing staff to learn how to use AI or leave, according to Lindsay Ellis in a Wall Street Journal article. Other companies are telling staff to master AI and then figure out how to use it to benefit the company.

In contrast, a few small companies have successfully applied AI technology to complete specific tasks, such as consolidating financial data like a CFO or responding to email inquiries. This required training AI to respond appropriately and correctly, as reported by Katherine Bindley in the Wall Street Journal. Eventually, AI could be as widely used as the Internet and social media.

Sources:

Clayton Christenson, an economist, coined the term "disruptive technology."

*IBM PCs, Wikipedia.

"Wireless spectrum: What it is, and why you should care," CNET, Marguerite Reardon. [Spectrum refers to] "invisible airwaves to transmit bits of data through the air."

"Use AI Or You’re Fired," L. Ellis, Wall Street Journal, 11/8-9/25.

https://www.mizuhogroup.com/americas/beyond-the-obvious/events/mizuho-technology-conference

"Small-Business Owners Are Putting AI to Good Use," K. Bindley, Wall Street Journal, 11/17/25. Market Insights

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