What Happens if AI Doesn’t Live Up to the Hype?

Artificial intelligence is having a moment in London. Last week, to coincide with London Tech Week, an annual showcase of the city’s digital prowess, London hosted CogX, a 6,000-person-strong event that bills itself as the “Festival of All Things AI,” and the AI Summit London, which lays claim to the mantle of “the world’s largest AI event for business.” The events have non-stop panels, parties, and big-name sponsors like SoftBank, Accenture, IBM and Google.

Underpinning much of the buzz over artificial intelligence in London and elsewhere is the implicit premise that AI is the transformative technology of the moment, or maybe of the decade, or even of the century or, well, just about ever. Promises like the AI Summit’s claim that the technology goes “beyond the hype” to “deliver real value in business” only drives the corporate feeding frenzy among executives desperate not to be left behind.