2024: From AI Hype to Real-World Impact - A Founder's Reflection

Written by Janey Treleaven, Founder & CEO at Intelligence Assist

As we approach the end of 2024, I find myself reflecting on a year that has been both challenging and incredibly rewarding. In January, I made the bold decision to fully commit to Intelligence Assist, driven by a vision to help small businesses navigate the complex world of AI. Looking back, it's remarkable to see how far we've come, and how the AI landscape has evolved from buzzing hype to practical reality.

The journey began with a simple observation: small businesses were struggling to make sense of AI, but not in the way many might expect. Through countless conversations at business networking events, a clear pattern emerged – most small business owners didn't think AI was even applicable to them. They saw it as the domain of large enterprises with substantial budgets and dedicated IT teams. This misconception was perhaps the biggest barrier we needed to overcome.

These early conversations were invaluable, fundamentally shaping our approach and reinforcing our mission. We discovered that the key to successful AI adoption wasn't about massive technological overhauls or significant upfront investments. Instead, it was about finding small, incremental productivity gains that could create the capacity for innovation.

This realisation led to one of our core principles: when time, money, and resources are limited, you need to find capacity to innovate before you can actually innovate. And when you do innovate, it has to truly make things easier, cheaper, or faster – not just add another layer of complexity to existing processes.

There were moments of doubt, I'll admit. Times when I questioned whether the AI hype was justified, whether we were truly on the right path. But these doubts only strengthened our commitment to a practical, results-driven approach. We made the conscious decision to remain tool-agnostic and focus on no-code AI solutions, ensuring that our recommendations would truly serve our clients' needs rather than forcing them into complex systems they didn't require.

This past year has taught us the importance of careful evaluation in the AI space. While there are incredible tools being developed, there's also a fair amount of "AI washing" – products that claim AI capabilities but fail to deliver meaningful value. We've dedicated significant time to experimenting with various tools, separating the truly useful from the merely trendy, ensuring that our recommendations don't end up costing more than they deliver. This commitment to practical, verified solutions has become a cornerstone of our approach, helping small businesses navigate not just the technology, but the marketing hype surrounding it.

October marked a pivotal moment for Intelligence Assist when we officially launched our service offering. The response has exceeded our expectations, with performance surpassing all our initial goals. While 2024 has brought its share of personal challenges and moments of sadness, we're ending the year on an undeniable upward trajectory.

The recent announcements from major Australian universities have been particularly validating. The University of Sydney's decision to allow students to use Generative AI for assessments, and UNSW's partnership with OpenAI for ChatGPT Edu, are clear indicators that AI has moved beyond the hype cycle and into what Gartner calls the "Plateau of Productivity."

As we step into 2025, the future looks incredibly bright for AI adoption and implementation. Unlike other technological trends that have come and gone – blockchain, NFTs, 3D television, or wearables like Google Glass – AI has proven its staying power by delivering tangible value across industries and applications. 

None of this journey would have been possible without the incredible individuals who have contributed to Intelligence Assist along the way. To Sky Reidy, Libby Porter, Harriet Brown, Mo Ahmed, Aaron Ding, and Alan de Zwaans – thank you for being part of our story. Your contributions, however brief or extended, have helped shape who we are today.

And to our current team – Kate Tabalba, Sam van Leeuwen, Issey Stevens, and Taylor Shutes – I'm filled with excitement about what we'll achieve together in 2025. Your dedication, creativity, and shared vision for helping small businesses thrive in the AI era make me incredibly proud to work alongside you.