This article originally appeared in the June 2024 issue of Security Business magazine. Don’t forget to mention Security Business magazine on LinkedIn and @SecBusinessMag on Twitter if you share it.
In May, PSA held the 52nd PSA TEC event in Dallas. As a PSAer, it is the best week of the year professionally. Yes, 15-plus-hour days are exhausting, but we get to see the whole network together, celebrate shared and individual successes, challenge ourselves… and even have some fun!
One of my favorite elements of PSA TEC is the keynote address, and this year’s speaker, Zack Kass, was potentially the most thought-provoking yet. Zack is an AI futurist and the former head of go-to-market strategy at OpenAI. In his address, “Leveraging AI for Good,” he helped us understand the current AI landscape and its future trajectory, gave practical applications for AI now, and helped us dream about what the world could look like in the future.
“By a show of hands, who here is afraid of AI,” Zack asked of the audience. Half the hands went up. When asked, “Who is afraid AI will take their job,” even fewer hands rose. Zack quipped we weren’t being truthful…and I think he is right.
In the early days of AI, I felt I was safe as a marketing and communications professional. Relieved I chose a creative profession, I felt bad for colleagues in other departments. Then, ChatGPT was released and I saw how people were using it to write blogs, articles, scripts, social media posts, etc., and I began to see how my field could also be disrupted.
This was part of Zack’s message – work collaboratively with AI to hand off tasks that take up time, don’t require critical thinking, and hinder you from being as productive as possible. Inevitably, AI will take many jobs, so what will humans be doing? Just as PSA TEC reminds us each year, there is nothing like human connection. AI won’t replace interpersonal relationships, creativity, and innovation. Zack’s message was to lean into your passion and be, well, more human!
In a recent survey of PSA integrators, 63% said they are currently considering the use of AI for video analytics. AI and machine learning ranked highest in trends integrators are most interested in.
Innovative security integrators are already using AI to optimize business operations, but many echoed the sentiment that AI products will be dependent on manufacturers, so they will be eager to see what comes to market and makes sense for end-users.
Many I spoke with had the same feeling – that AI is a huge disruptor that they are excited about, but they have no idea how or where to get started. No doubt our team will be working hard to determine how we can support integrators in this wave of AI adoption.
