Having lived and worked in Silicon Valley for 25 years, I’ve witnessed the pace and pattern of technological change — from the early days of the web to the rise of e-commerce, search, mobile, social, streaming, and cloud computing. Every technological change comes with anxiety, uncertainty, pauses, and setbacks. But before you know it, we wake up just a few years later in a world built around new technologies and systems, with new business models and industry leaders.
Now we are in the midst of the AI revolution. The same anxieties and concerns about moving forward are emerging. Legal, ethical, organizational, ROI, you name it. Or better yet. AI is just another technology bubble like the metaverse or blockchain. But in Silicon Valley, we call this the “wall of worry.”
Remember the old objections: “No one will put their credit card on a website,” “Amazon can’t ship toys by Christmas,” or “Who will watch a movie on a computer?” Silicon Valley companies love the “wall of worry”. While others hesitate, forming task forces and committees, they build new business models, processes, and platforms.
So, what lessons can we learn from how Silicon Valley companies move, embrace, and lead transformations in fast-changing technology markets? And how can we use those lessons to motivate people in organizations to engage with AI?
Lesson One: Start small, start with a pilot.
MVPs (minimum viable products), use cases, and pilots are the foundation of Silicon Valley’s lean startup approach. Finding a targeted business problem and a simple, lower-risk, pilot is the best way to engage and to persuade organizations to use AI.
Consider the work Serviceplan’s two AI Labs are doing together with major global fashion brands. These brands recognize there are major cost savings and opportunities to improve shopping cart conversions using generative AI for image and copy creation. However, they are also nervous about the implications of AI on their brand’s authenticity and the ability of AI to achieve their aesthetic standards.
So, we set up our pilots with these companies first to develop processes that their internal teams can use to gain comfort around the quality of AI images and the systems to develop them. Once they are satisfied with the results, we then roll these images out to their websites and customers. If we are successful there, we expand to the entire fashion catalog and global operation.
Smaller pilots offer multiple benefits: You begin working with fast-changing AI tools and technologies, learning and building trust. They also provide proof points and case studies for senior management and Boards of Directors. Sometimes, proving that you are doing something with AI is as important as the actual results of the work.
Lesson Two: Focus on Costs Before Growth
In times of uncertainty, focus on costs and efficiency first, then on growth. Little-known fact: major technological transitions like cloud computing, mobile web, and paid search often happened during economic slowdowns. When organizations face financial uncertainty, they become more interested in technologies that reduce costs and improve margins.
When it becomes clear that an AI pilot project significantly reduces costs in areas such as creative production, digital design, or media automation, it becomes easier to persuade executives and boards to approve AI initiatives. For one major global client, we are building a radical new AI video advertising process that makes it possible to produce high-quality web spots more cost-effectively and quickly. Once cost efficiencies are proven, we can focus on using those innovations to drive growth.
Lesson Three: Re-imagine Everything — Dream Big
Silicon Valley entrepreneurs use their initial MVPs and use cases to learn first about a focused problem, but they simultaneously use that experience to imagine a greater potential for larger systems and business operations. With each pilot project, you start to see how AI technologies impact a narrowly defined functional area, but also how the technology can be applied to entire marketing systems and business processes.
For example, with Serviceplan Generate.AI, our agency's proprietary, GDPR compliant generative AI tool for image generation, AI can be integrated into creation processes. But as you begin to consider the connection of those AI-generated images to media channels and creative optimization, you can see the potential for greater efficiencies and scale across the entire media ecosystem.
As you gain experience, you can apply multiple AI techniques across a company’s entire marketing ecosystem, presenting larger opportunities for client engagement.
Final lesson: Move fast!
Speed and agility are critical success factors in Silicon Valley. Try things, make things, make mistakes, learn, adapt. Remember: “Perfect is the enemy of good.” We normally like to plan, learn, and then do. But in the AI revolution, you must flip the paradigm: Do, learn, then plan!
One technology revolution ago, a famous Silicon Valley entrepreneur commanded their company to “Move fast and break things”. In this AI moment, embrace a new, more positive motto: Move fast and make things!
Go ahead — chase the future!
Author: Rob Wrubel, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Silverside AI
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