What a difference a year makes.
On November 22, 2023, OpenAI made ChatGPT available for the public to experiment with generative AI. In less than a year, ChatGPT and other generative AI platforms have led to monumental changes in how we work and what we expect from applications. Most significantly, it’s shaken up the dominant players in tech.
Here are a few things to consider that we wouldn’t have a year ago:
- Using Microsoft Bing for search wasn’t on many people’s radar.
- Employers and job seekers are using generative AI to find each other.
- Generative AI would be one of the drivers for a 148-day strike by the Writer’s Guild of America (and an ongoing strike by SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors.)
- Software companies would throw out their roadmaps and add generative AI features in applications that make sense (email marketing, social media tools, image editing tools) and ones that don’t (LinkedIn).
As we approach year two of the generative AI revolution, we still have so many questions, especially as business leaders. We’ve seen the interest in generative AI continue to grow with our clients, from finding ways to enhance or develop new features in existing applications.
The excitement is there, but as business leaders, we need to approach AI with a focus on protecting sensitive data and ensuring the privacy of our customers.
Privacy by design
Take a "privacy-first" approach by designing data privacy and security into the foundation of your generative AI projects. Prioritize anonymizing and encrypting sensitive data, ensuring compliance with relevant data privacy regulations (e.g., GDPR, CCPA). Educate your team about the importance of data privacy and foster a culture that upholds these principles at every stage of development.
Collecting and using data for training
You’ve spent time building trust with your customers. Keep building that trust when you’re using customer data for training AI models by clearly defining guidelines for collecting and using that data. The foundation of this is setting up protocols for obtaining consent and communicating to customers, partners, and vendors how data will be used so you can maintain the trust you’ve built.
Minimize the amount of personal data collected
The regulations around personally identifiable information (PII) will vary based on your business and customers' location. Minimizing the PII collected—and anonymizing it—will help protect the privacy of individuals, allowing your generative AI models to operate effectively without compromising sensitive data.
Continuous training and education
We believe in fostering a culture built around learning. Investing in training programs for your team can help them stay updated on the evolving landscape of generative AI, data privacy, and security. Provide training opportunities and resources to ensure your team is well-versed in best practices, emerging technologies, and compliance requirements.
Create an AI playground
You wouldn’t deploy a significant update into your production environment without testing it first. The same goes for developing and exploring AI tools. Creating an internal development area where your team can experiment with AI gives them the freedom to explore while protecting your business and data.
Integrating these considerations into your approach allows you to leverage generative AI to its full potential while upholding the highest data privacy and customer protection standards. BitBakery is dedicated to guiding businesses through the complexities of AI, ensuring a secure, ethical, and advanced technological landscape. Together, let’s harness AI responsibly, shaping a future that is not only innovative but also trustworthy.
Photo by Scott Rodgerson on Unsplash
