AI experimentation should have room for play

“This is the kind of AI slop I pay tokens for.” That was my reaction when I shared a playful AI-generated video on LinkedIn, credited there to Vittorio, @IterIntellectus.

There is room for delight in learning a technology. An unusual creative result can make you want to try something yourself. That curiosity is useful, especially for executives whose experience of AI has been confined to vendor presentations and investment papers.

Follow the curiosity into a real task

Give yourself permission to experiment. Make something, change the instructions and inspect what happens. Then take the same willingness to explore into a piece of work you understand well enough to judge.

Try a presentation you need to give, a market question you need to investigate or a document you need to challenge. Look closely at the choices the system makes. Decide which parts improve the result and which parts need your intervention.

The entertaining experiment gets you started. The real task gives your judgment something to work on.

Keep the purpose of the work clear

A video can earn its place by being enjoyable. An investment paper has to earn its place by helping somebody make a decision. Judge each result against its purpose.

I want executive learning to leave room for this kind of exploration. Curiosity creates a reason to engage personally, and personal engagement produces better questions than watching another polished demonstration.

Try the thing that makes you curious. Then bring what you discover back to the work you are responsible for.