In *The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy*, Douglas Adams calls ‘42’ the answer to everything. Whether that metaphor applies to artificial intelligence, Ton Foks (creator of Experiment42, with a slight nod to that number) wisely leaves open to interpretation. What he does state with certainty, however, is that any organisation wishing to take AI seriously would do well to first familiarise itself with the essence of the technology and its key concepts.
The rise of AI shows striking parallels with the dawn of the internet era in the 1990s and 2000s. Back then, everyone suddenly wanted a website; now, everyone wants ‘something to do with AI’. Both technologies began with great promises: the internet was set to democratise information, blur boundaries and connect people worldwide. AI promises far-reaching automation and infinite knowledge and creativity for everyone.
The ethical questions sound familiar, too. Whereas the internet raised issues of privacy and disinformation, AI raises questions about authorship, human value and trust. In both cases, it is about more than just technology; it is also about what we, as a society, consider important.
Impact
Just as with the rise of the internet, the true impact of artificial intelligence is not yet fully apparent, as Ton Foks (speaker, entrepreneur, guest lecturer and founder of Experiment42) also points out: “Generative AI, in particular, is developing at breakneck speed, but we will only know later exactly how it will change work, education and creativity. We are, however, seeing the same shift as we did with the internet back then: information became available to everyone. AI is doing something similar with language, ideas and creativity.” 
Ton Foks
New industrial revolution
Foks continues: “Just as with building a website, it’s important not to rush into things. You wouldn’t just slap together a good site without first thinking about why you want a website in the first place, what the site should do for you and what return you expect from the investment.
Before you can assess whether AI is ‘right for your business’, there are a few things you need to be clear about. First of all: where do you currently create value for your customer? Where does your real added value lie: in processes, tasks or roles? And how important do customers consider these to be?
The clearer you are on this, the better you’ll be able to see where AI can enhance your business and where it poses a threat to that value creation. To do this, you need a broad understanding of what AI is already capable of today and what is predicted for the future. Because your business is caught right in the middle of this. This is no ordinary technological development, but an exponential change. A new industrial revolution, you might say.”
Giant language model
To begin with: AI has now become an umbrella term. Generative AI is a specific application of this, focused on creating content: text, images, sound or code. ChatGPT is a well-known example. The system is built on a so-called Large Language Model (LLM), a very extensive language model that has been trained on billions of text examples from websites, books, articles and other sources. The model recognises patterns in language and generates new texts, ideas or analyses at lightning speed.
GPT stands for Generative Pre-trained Transformer: a model that is first trained on a large scale and then deployed flexibly to formulate answers or suggestions. The output often feels personal, but there is no consciousness or understanding; it is primarily a matter of statistics.
Knowledge leveller
Okay, clear. But what does this mean concretely for your company? According to Ton Foks, it is important to investigate which tasks and processes in the company are under pressure. Those you can address, speed up and improve with generative AI. "At its core, AI is a knowledge leveller," says Foks. "Knowledge that used to be scarce and strategic is now available in seconds. This shift is bigger than it first appears. Knowledge is no longer something you guard or shield; much of it is now open and readily available. What sets you apart is not what you know, but what you do with it: how you apply it. That requires something new from people and organisations. In almost every domain - education, government and business - you see that change."
Competitive advantage
"For companies, this means: efficiency is becoming a given. In the future, AI will take over more and more tasks and do so ever faster and more reliably. As a result, the work that remains will take on a different charge. It is precisely there that what people add becomes visible: character, creativity and the ability to make genuine connections. These are the qualities that will soon make the difference. Where technology ends, the human domain begins. Exactly therein lies your competitive advantage."
Existential uncertainty
These rapid developments also raise questions. Some employees are concerned about their job security. Foks understands this, but puts it into perspective: “Technology has changed professions and businesses time and again, from the steam engine to the internet. AI is part of that list. Panic doesn’t help anyone. Facing the beast head-on does. So identify which tasks are changing, discuss this openly with your team and set out how you’ll actively support your staff to be and remain valuable in the age of AI. If you’d like to bounce some ideas off me about this, let’s grab a coffee soon.”
Experiment42 aims to be a sort of village square for generative AI. A place where you can go with questions and meet people who are thinking along with you.
We’re building that square together with others from the region: tech partners, grant advisers, entrepreneurs, thinkers and doers. A few examples: Nexagon, IT Student Lab, AI Hub Oost Nederland, Lifeport@, MKB Datalab Oost.
Sometimes we help build, just as often we refer people on. It’s all about connection.
Because you can’t do this on your own. Do you want AI to deliver real benefits for businesses and their people? Then you really need to work together.
Fancy a no-obligation chat about how Generative AI can help you achieve your goals?
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info@experiment42.nl
