Five Top Tech Takeaways: GenAI and CFOs + Impact on Jobs, Gartner's Take on AI & the Hype Cycle, and how Anguilla is Cashing In on AI

Descending from the Peak of Inflated Expectations

Gartner's AI Hype Cycle 2023: We Are at the Peak of Inflated Expectations

Gartner’s 2023 AI Hype Cycle places generative AI and foundation models at the "Peak of Inflated Expectations," indicating a mixture of success and failures in these technologies. Other technologies like smart robots, responsible AI, and neuromorphic computing are also at this peak, poised to enter the "Trough of Disillusionment." The most mature technologies are situated on the "Slope of Enlightenment," which includes computer vision, data labelling and annotation, and cloud AI services. None have yet reached the "Plateau of Productivity," the stage at which the technology is mainstream and consistently beneficial. The report suggests that these emerging technologies are not just hype; they have high or transformative potential benefits across industries. However, data and analytics leaders should be cautious and ask specific questions before investing in these technologies. (Source: TechRepublic)

WSJ on Why CFOs Can’t Afford to Ignore Generative AI

As generative artificial intelligence (AI) technology matures, CFOs are exploring its potential for enhancing accounting and finance operations. Companies like Zoom and Ford have already started to implement AI tools for tasks like predictive analytics and automating routine jobs. While AI promises to drastically improve efficiencies and cost savings, CFOs must navigate concerns surrounding data security, reliability, and interpretability of AI decisions. Experts advocate for a proactive approach, advising CFOs to integrate AI into their long-term strategies to avoid falling behind competitors. Additionally, it is crucial for CFOs to evaluate the ROI of these technologies carefully, especially as they can significantly impact selling, general, and administrative costs. As AI continues to evolve, CFOs must plan for its scaled implementation as early as 2025. (Source: Wall Street Journal)

Anguilla to Generate $30 Million from .AI Domains in 2023

Anguilla, a small Caribbean island, is experiencing a surge in revenue thanks to its top-level domain, ".ai," which has become increasingly popular among artificial intelligence (AI) startups and tech giants alike. While Anguilla has been assigning the .ai domain since the 1990s, recent advancements in AI have driven a dramatic increase in registrations. Vince Cate, the manager of the .ai domain for Anguilla, estimates that the island will generate up to $30 million in domain registration fees for 2023. Tech companies like Google, Facebook, and Microsoft also own .ai domains, emphasizing their focus on AI technologies. The island, which largely relies on tourism, brought in $7.4 million from .ai domain registrations in 2021 and anticipates significantly exceeding its initial 2023 estimate of $8.3 million. The recent launch of ChatGPT is cited as a contributing factor to the uptick in demand for .ai domains. (Source: Bloomberg)

Generative AI and Its Impact on Employment: A McKinsey Analysis

A report exploring the impact of Generative AI was published by McKinsey in July. By 2030, automation could affect up to 30% of hours currently worked, with generative AI mostly enhancing roles in STEM, creative, and business fields. In contrast, customer service, food service, and office support jobs may continue to decline. Federal investments in climate and infrastructure are expected to shift jobs from fossil fuel sectors to green industries and create a net gain in employment. The report also indicates that healthcare, construction, and transportation are likely to see increased job demand. Women and low-wage workers are identified as the most vulnerable to these occupational shifts. The report had these takeaways:

Jobs in Demand

• STEM Professions: Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics
• Creative Professions: Artists, designers, writers
• Business and Legal Professionals: Lawyers, business analysts, consultants
• Green Industries: Renewable energy technicians, environmental scientists
• Healthcare Workers: Nurses, doctors, healthcare administrators
• Construction Workers: High demand due to infrastructure projects
• Transportation Services: E-commerce growth necessitates more drivers and logistics professionals

Shrinking Job Sectors

• Food Services: Many people are leaving this sector
• Customer Service: Likely to be hit by automation
• Office Support: Decline due to automation
• Oil and Gas: Employment will shift due to climate policies
• Automotive Manufacturing: Expected to decline as electric vehicles rise
• In-person Sales: Decrease due to the rise of online shopping

Hardest to Fill

• Construction: Already short almost 400,000 workers
• Healthcare: Demand will increase with an aging population
• Specialized STEM Roles: High skill requirements make these hard-to-fill
• Green Industry Jobs: As a nascent industry, finding skilled workers may be a challenge

(Source: McKinsey)

The Future of White-Collar Jobs in the Age of Generative AI

Generative AI technologies promise monumental macroeconomic benefits, potentially doubling U.S. productivity growth rates and adding trillions to the global economy. However, these technologies also threaten to disrupt various professions, including knowledge workers and white-collar professionals. Generative AI is being integrated into tasks like summarizing documents, content creation, and data analysis, areas that were typically the domain of higher-wage employees. Companies are cautiously optimistic about the technology, although concerns about AI's limitations and ethical questions around labour displacement are pressing. Industry reports by McKinsey and Goldman Sachs indicate that the gains could be massive but must be managed carefully to ensure they don't result in adverse social and economic impacts. (Source: Wall Street Journal)

Author: Malik Datardina, CPA, CA, CISA. Malik works at Auvenir as a GRC Strategist who is working to transform the engagement experience for accounting firms and their clients. The opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent UWCISA, UW, Auvenir (or its affiliates), CPA Canada or anyone else. This post was written with the assistance of an AI language model. The model provided suggestions and completions to help me write, but the final content and opinions are my own.

Can accounting errors ruin your life? JohnOliver explains how they can.

In this episode Last Week Tonight, John Oliver explores the world of debt buying:



The segment received wide publicity as he tried to out do Oprah by conducting the biggest giveaway on television - he bought $15 million worth of medical debt and forgave it. This article on Fortune does a good job of summarizing the show:

• US households owe $12 trillion in debt of which $436 billion is 90+ days past due. 
• Companies who discharge the debt sell it for pennies on the dollar to a growing number of companies that specializes in debt buying.  
• One company, Encore Capital, notes that in 1 in 5 Americans owes or has owed them money. 
• Debt that's been paid "come back to life", which is affectionately known as Zombie debt.

There was some controversy, however, about who he worked with to write-off the debt (they noted their grievances here, to which John responded here) and the value of the debt. On the latter count, is it really fair to criticize an act of charity that improved the lives of approximately 9,000 people?  

Nothing good happens in Excel. 
But the segment which is most relevant to us is when he starts talking about how the information is actually sold.  It is sold on spreadsheets. Oliver gets quite dramatic as he shares his his phobia of Excel and notes how "nothing good happens in Excel". He also explains that the spreadsheets are sold "as is"; meaning that the seller does not guaranty accuracy of the information related to the debt contracts being sold.

And that's where the jokes stops.

In the segment, he has footage from interviews with Jake Halpern, who wrote "Bad Paper: Chasing Debt from Wall Street to the Underworld". The book follows the life of a debt buyer of Aaron Siegel, who is born to a rich family in Buffalo, New York. He takes an array of characters, including his Brandon, who is an ex-con who does that gritty part of work of finding the debt, ensuring its good and collecting on it.

What caught my attention as I was going through book, is that it gave a bit more detail to what John Oliver mentioned about the banks selling the paper "as is". Halpern notes on page 58 of his book (see below for the link to the book), that when Washington Mutual sold Joanna and Theresa's debt to Aaron, the credits awarded against their accounts that were not reflected in the spreadsheet that was given to the debt buyer.


And that's how accounting errors can ruin lives.

When you read the life stories of these two ladies it's heart wrenching to think that a few lines on an Excel spreadsheet could have a detrimental impact on their lives. Some would cynically say this is over dramatic and try to find reason to blame Joanna and Theresa falling into this problem. But I don't think that's fair. When you read the lives of these people, it's clear that they were affected by factors beyond their control. It's really this broken system of debt collection that is responsible for them failing to get the debt relief that they were owed.

The way accounting systems and spreadsheets are designed and operated can have real impact on real people. As an accountant myself, I often wondered what value is accounting in the grand scheme of things. But as Halpern's story illustrates the accountants, bookkeepers, etc. had a real impact on the livesof these two women.

No one is saying that accountants have the same impact on the lives of people the way a cancer specialist does. But at the same time a few a lines on Excel spreadsheet could be the difference between perpetual anxiety and a good nights sleep.