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The problem at IBM is not technological; it's managerial. For a long while now, IBM has been treating "AI" as a product that can be managed, packaged, and sold
by cs702 8y ago
The problem at IBM is not technological; it's managerial.
For a long while now, IBM has been treating "AI" as a product that can be managed, packaged, and sold by "general" business managers -- think MBA-types with only a superficial, qualitative grasp of deep learning and AI. Doing that with rapidly evolving technology is a sure-fire recipe for failure.
Most such MBA-types today are ill-equipped to manage, package, and sell "AI." They're roughly in the same position as English or History majors who are asked, say, to manage, package, and sell a new kind of quantum-computing technology without knowing or understanding much about quantum physics. The technology is moving faster than their ability to keep up.
IBM's mismanagement is a shame, because the system they showcased nearly a decade ago -- the one that competed and won in Jeopardy -- was state-of-the-art at the time.
- l1ncoln 8y agoMBAs vs. undergrads with liberal arts degrees is a whole other discussion. An argument can definitely be made for a liberal arts skill-set in terms of adaptability and capacity to quickly learn other skills/subjects. Not sure if that encompasses something as complicated or esoteric as the technicalities of AI/ML, though.
- rossdavidh 8y agoTo be honest, I would rather work for someone who just got an undergrad liberal arts degree, who is aware they don't know technology. They can learn, and there's plenty of stuff about communicating with (and for) customers that I don't know or don't do well, so it can work well. Which is all theoretically true of an MBA too, but...
- opportune 8y agoNot sure how to directly link to the post on HN, but I previously posted a (too long) comment that hits on some very similar points: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16960675 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16960675
- sumoboy 8y agoIt's the entire company, not just these Watson groups. They have a history of buying companies or taking over I/T departments and re-badging employee's only to ax nearly all of them once the knowledge is transferred to some 3rd world country workforce. Stories like this are not a surprise, it's IBM's way of doing business. Maybe Watson will learn HR and just fire everybody from middle mgmt on up..
- erikpukinskis 8y agoAs of 2018, after seeing how terrible “engineer-types” can be at engineering management, the MBAs are starting to look better to me.
- airstrike 8y agoAs an MBA who browses HN, I'm torn between the two opinions
- jeffjose 8y agoAs an engineer who has an MBA from HSW, I'm even more torn.
- cs702 8y agoerikpukinskis, airstrike, jeffjose: I did not criticize MBA's in general! My comment mentioned specifically "MBA-types with only a superficial, qualitative grasp of deep learning and AI." MBAs who understand what they're managing (and who know what they don't know) are not in that group. And BTW, I suspect most MBAs who read HN are not in that group either :-)