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“If AI is the new electricity, then data is the new coal.“ Ugh

by Vaslo 7y ago

amrrs 7y ago
I've been pondering about this analogy. I like this one but if AI us the new electricity do we need more Edisons or Teslas? I think everyone jumping into AI stuff learning Deep learning and stuff seems to learning how to create electricity itself than creating Lightbulb and other stuff that runs on electricity - building user apps on it. Does anyone else feel so ?
- heipei 7y ago
  I don't know, just check out a few Kaggle competitions and how pragmatic the winning teams are approaching their solution. It's most often a combination of tried-and-true techniques, used in an ensemble, with some smart feature selection. Anecdotally, there's plenty of ready-to-use ML tech available nowadays that I, as a novice, was able to go from zero to working Gradient Boosting classifier within a few days. For me that's the definition of applying the techniques without trying to earn a PhD in the field.
fhars 7y ago
I think „data is the new oil“ is the more apt analogy: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=oil+spill+bird&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=oil+spill+bird&iax=images&ia=image...
- nkozyra 7y ago
  Oil is the processed product. Data is more like coal, generally useless to ML unless processed.
  - boulos 7y ago
    Oil is both terms (e.g., crude oil).
nkozyra 7y ago
"Ugh" is not a substantial rejoinder. It's an apt analogy in my opinion. People keep waiting for AI to break out, and the argument here is it's not alone a product, it's a requisite tool for building them. AI, of course, is dependent on copious quality data, such that it fuels AI. With what would you disagree?
- skybrian 7y ago
  Like many memes, it's vivid for no good reason. The only relationship in common is that A depends on B. Everything else about it is misleading. Data is not fuel, let alone a fossil fuel. It doesn't provide energy and doesn't get used up.
  - hirundo 7y ago
    > It doesn't provide energy Training a model with data reduces entropy in the model. Isn't a local increase in energy a decrease in entropy? > ... and doesn't get used up. With respect to the model, that data was useful before training and not useful after training. Its entropy lowering potential is decreased.
  - nkozyra 7y ago
    Fuel is used as the metaphor here in the respective mechanisms.
dang 7y ago
Please don't do this here. It only makes things worse.

“If AI is the new electricity, then data is the new coal.“ Ugh

by Vaslo 7y ago

“If AI is the new electricity, then data is the new coal.“ Ugh

I've been pondering about this analogy. I like this one but if AI us the new electricity do we need more Edisons or Teslas? I think everyone jumping into AI stuff learning Deep learning and stuff seems to learning how to create electricity itself than creating Lightbulb and other stuff that runs on electricity - building user apps on it. Does anyone else feel so ?

heipei 7y ago
I don't know, just check out a few Kaggle competitions and how pragmatic the winning teams are approaching their solution. It's most often a combination of tried-and-true techniques, used in an ensemble, with some smart feature selection. Anecdotally, there's plenty of ready-to-use ML tech available nowadays that I, as a novice, was able to go from zero to working Gradient Boosting classifier within a few days. For me that's the definition of applying the techniques without trying to earn a PhD in the field.

fhars 7y ago

I think „data is the new oil“ is the more apt analogy: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=oil+spill+bird&iax=images&ia=images https://duckduckgo.com/?q=oil+spill+bird&iax=images&ia=image...

nkozyra 7y ago
Oil is the processed product. Data is more like coal, generally useless to ML unless processed.
- boulos 7y ago
  Oil is both terms (e.g., crude oil).

nkozyra 7y ago

"Ugh" is not a substantial rejoinder. It's an apt analogy in my opinion. People keep waiting for AI to break out, and the argument here is it's not alone a product, it's a requisite tool for building them. AI, of course, is dependent on copious quality data, such that it fuels AI. With what would you disagree?

skybrian 7y ago
Like many memes, it's vivid for no good reason. The only relationship in common is that A depends on B. Everything else about it is misleading. Data is not fuel, let alone a fossil fuel. It doesn't provide energy and doesn't get used up.
- hirundo 7y ago
  > It doesn't provide energy Training a model with data reduces entropy in the model. Isn't a local increase in energy a decrease in entropy? > ... and doesn't get used up. With respect to the model, that data was useful before training and not useful after training. Its entropy lowering potential is decreased.
- nkozyra 7y ago
  Fuel is used as the metaphor here in the respective mechanisms.

dang 7y ago

Please don't do this here. It only makes things worse.