With agentic artificial intelligence (AI) becoming a regular part of daily life, its impact and how to adapt to it has been the topic of recent conversation. One of the biggest discussions is how humans will interact with AI in the future.
This has been a significant topic as concerns grow concerning the “Dead Internet Theory”. The “Dead Internet Theory” speculates that there will be a point in time where the majority of Internet content and interactions will be through AI versus humans. In other words, it removes the human from the loop.
Is the “Dead Internet Theory” concern warranted or overblown? There will no doubt be a natural increase in Internet traffic driven by AI. As AI continues to improve and is integrated into the daily human lives, this growth of AI traffic is natural and expected.
If one thinks about the hundreds if not thousands of menial tasks that humans undertake each day, it is not surprising that if AI can truly act as an extension of humans, Internet traffic may tip towards an AI driven majority. Whether it is paying bills or buying dish soap, there could be a world where transactions are automated with human supervision. If one adds up all of those transactions, it is logical to see an Internet where the majority of traffic is AI driven.
Is the Internet doomed then? No, it is transforming. More than likely it is one where both humans and AI will interact in a hybrid manner. What society is seeing is a transformation of what it means to work, play, and live.
What does this mean then for individuals and organizations attempting to gain traction and visibility in this new AI age? It means that the maxims of old will have to be adapted and potentially discarded in this new age.
One may wonder why anyone should care about visibility. Whether an individual or an organization recognizes it or not, the need for visibility has been a requirement since the dawn of civilization. Visibility brings awareness and it brings resources and growth.
Pre-AI, visibility was easily divided between in-person and virtual. In-person was accomplished through a number of means. For individuals, it was networking, coffee chats, or even traditional fashion peacocking. For organizations, it was sponsorships, advertising, or activations.
In the pre-AI world, visibility in the virtual realm was relatively straightforward. Whether it was an individual or an organization, one built a web site that was search engine optimized (SEO), cross-linked with affiliate sites, and reposted on relevant social media platforms.
Today with AI, gaining visibility in the virtual realm is more complicated than ever. Does one appeal to the humans who are still perusing the Internet or to the large learning models (LLMs) that form the basis of today’s chatbots and increasingly searches? Deciding is complicated by the fact that AI technology and its implementation in society is evolving on a daily basis.
So what is one to do? With the state of AI a constantly evolving one, it is difficult to state that one consistent and predictable path will be available in the near future. As such, fortunately or unfortunately, individuals and organizations will need to monitor the state of affairs and adjust accordingly.
If that is the case, what are individuals and organizations to do in the interim? In a virtual realm where AI is exerting itself on information channels and potentially relaying information, data is power.
What does that mean data is power? With LLMs forming the core foundation of AI chatbots, it is critical that the data available to these LLMs is as accurate and up-to-date as possible.
This basic advice isn’t new. Even in the pre-AI age, there were warnings to individuals and organizations that they needed to ensure that their social media postings were reflective of who they were now versus who they were in the past. Many individuals and organizations have seen their growth trajectories derail because of an old social media post that did not reflect who they were now.
What is different in the dawn of the AI age is the fact that it isn’t just social media posts. It is all data in all channels that needs to be maintained and monitored. This is primarily due to the fact that LLMs ingest data from everywhere and anywhere that is feasible.
As such, it is necessary that individuals and organizations monitor, update, and maintain not only direct data and sites but indirect ones as well. A monumental task if one thinks about it.
As such, it is critical for both individuals and organizations to not only be consistent in the maintenance of their data both direct and indirect but not let perfection to be the enemy of good. In other words, it is critical to acknowledge that whether accomplished manually or through AI, there is no way that any individual or organization will be able to complete control the data in the virtual realm.
Why is data so important to an individual’s or an organization’s visibility? The reality is as LLMs continue to collect data and leverage it in responding to prompts, said data must be as up-to-date and accurate as possible. Why? The simple reason is that while there may be a future where AI talks to each other, humans are still in the loop and the same principles still apply to influence humans. For now.
What does this mean? It means that individuals and organizations must be accurately reflected as much as possible in prompt responses the first time. Unlike traditional search engine results where humans would go through multiple sources to determine accuracy and veracity, the current trend for individuals that leverage prompts is to utilize the prompt response the first time. Indeed, most individuals, especially if they are in a hurry, will not take the time and effort to conduct deeper research. As such, it is critical to ensure those prompt responses are as accurate as possible.