From Breadcrumbs to Bytes: How Your Online Data Trains AI
By Kraig Kleeman
“As you tap, swipe, and click through your digital day, ever pause to wonder where your data dances off to? Today, we pull back the curtain on the AI puppeteers pulling strings with your posts.” — Erik Severinghaus, Founder and CEO
Introduction
Today, I am exploring something both very exciting and a little worrying—how technology companies, including my own company, use all the data we make every day to teach artificial intelligence. Ever thought about what happens when you post on social media, search for things online, or shop on the internet? Let’s unpack that.
Where Does Your Data Go?
Imagine every time you like, share, or search something online as if you are dropping little crumbs while walking. The tech companies pick up all these small pieces to give food to their AI systems. Here is simple explanation: you write about your new drone on social media, and soon after, you notice many ads for drone accessories. This shows how AI works; it learns from what you post to make the ads more relevant and interesting just for you.
But it’s not only about earning money from ads. This data also helps AI to understand human behaviors and preferences better, making the AI more intelligent. For instance, if you always ask your voice assistant about basketball game results, it starts to learn how to get those scores quicker and might even guess when you want new updates. Very cool, yes?
A Personal Story
I want to share a personal story. When we just started our work at Bloomfilter, we made a chatbot that was quite simple. It could reply to FAQs but often got confused with more detailed questions. When we began giving it various talks—such as chats about favorite films or pizza choices—it started picking up on slight differences better. This evolution was all thanks to the massive amounts of varied data it processed.
So, What’s the Big Deal with Privacy?
Now, talking about the tricky part—privacy. While it is exciting to see AI get better, it is also frightening to think about how much personal information is out there. I mean, do you really want a company knowing everything about you?
Here is where things become tricky. Many people do not read the data usage policies when they start to use a new app or service (be honest, you have also clicked ‘agree’ without going through that long and dull text). This no clear information is big issue. Companies need to make it simple for people to know what data they take and why they do this.
Making It Right
At Bloomfilter, we value transparency very much. We inform users about all the data we gather and provide them with a clear option to opt out if they wish. But this only beginning. Whole tech industry must improve in protecting user data, making sure it’s used responsibly and with good ethics.
Looking Ahead
As we go forward, AI will need much more data to become better and less of a problem for privacy. We must have wiser laws and guidelines to make sure that when AI becomes smarter, our private lives do not disappear.
So, what we can do about this? First step is to be more careful with permissions you give and information you share. Companies similar to ours must improve, but users also should keep themselves informed and watchful.
Wrap Up
To sum up, it is exciting to watch AI progress and change, driven by our own data. But we must remember the duty that comes with this capability. Both technology companies and users should join efforts so that as we move forward into future times, our privacy does not stay behind.
Thank you for listening, and keep in mind that knowing about AI is not only for technology experts—it matters to everyone. Let’s be wise in how we allow our data to influence the future.
About Erik Severinghaus
Erik Severinghaus is an accomplished entrepreneur, author, and mountaineer, blending Mark Zuckerberg’s visionary business insights with Tony Stark’s innovative humanitarian efforts. With sharp business acumen and a talent for engaging stakeholders, Erik has founded and exited ventures generating over $600M in value. A founding investor in Hyde Park Angels, he helped propel ShipBob to unicorn status and raised $6M for his latest venture, Bloomfilter, which is experiencing rapid growth. Also an endurance athlete, Erik has summited major peaks, including Mt. Everest. He often shares how overcoming business challenges has prepared him for his climbing triumphs.