Real AI: AI agents are the next big thing, AI and the Big Apple, fast facts, and AI quote of the week

By Kevin Hawkins with Korey Hawkins | Vol. 2 Issue 18

Real AI is a 100% human-created weekly roundup of all things AI in real estate and emerging AI innovations in other sectors likely to impact real estate, posting weekly.

AI agents are the next big thing

This week, Sam Altman, head of OpenAI, tells MIT Technology Review that AI agents are poised to become AI’s killer app. Compared to what these new AI Agents will do, ChatGPT-4 will look pretty dumb, Altman says.

What is the difference between an AI chatbot and an AI agent?

Think of an AI chatbot as a super smart app on your phone. You can converse with it, almost like texting with a knowledgeable friend. The app understands what you’re saying and sends you helpful and relevant responses. Its main purpose is to answer your question and provide information to assist you – like a pocket-sized expert you can talk to anytime, anywhere.

Now, what if that app could do more than talk to you? What if it could take action and get things done for you? That’s what an AI agent does. An AI agent is like a highly advanced version of your chat app but can go beyond just conversation.

Here are three things an AI agent does differently:

1. Works independently: AI agents can understand what you need and work independently to make it happen without you constantly giving them instructions. In contrast, chatbots mainly respond to what you say to them in the moment.
2. Focuses on goals: AI agents are designed to achieve specific objectives or get the best possible results for you. In contrast, chatbots mainly focus on having helpful conversations and providing information.
3. Interact with the digital world: AI agents can interact with and make changes in the digital world to complete tasks for you. For example, they could automatically fill out online forms, manage your schedule, sort your Gmail, or even make purchases on your behalf. Chatbots, on the other hand, usually operate within the conversation itself.

Picture AI agents as super-intelligent digital assistants that can handle complex tasks like analyzing data, optimizing your marketing spend, or managing projects from start to finish.

While AI chatbots are excellent for engaging in human-like conversations and providing helpful information, AI agents are more independent, goal-oriented, and able to take action in the digital world to help get your work done. (-Kevin)

The Big Apple could take a big bite of AI

Accenture just released a new study at tech:nyc about “How generative AI will unlock big value in the Big Apple.” The study says generative AI can conservatively unlock $320 billion in additional economic value for the state of New York over the next 15 years.

The math: Gen AI could impact 44% of work hours across the US – even higher in NYC. Accenture estimates that nearly two-thirds of work hours (63%) in NYC could be augmented or automated by gen AI. In banking, it could be as high as 71%.

Accenture looked at 19 different sectors, but unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your POV), real estate was not among the sectors examined.

What is important for real estate professionals to know, particularly in NYC, is that 92% of NY executives are planning to recruit new AI talent in the next 3 years. In the last year, AI jobs in NYC have increased by 39%.

They admit that housing affordability is the one area that will not help their AI recruiting efforts. It ranked last among the factors that will aid AI recruitment efforts. (-Kevin)

AI Fast Facts

AI Headlines – Take 5

AI Quote of the Week

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