B2B vs Consumer AI Impact

Emmett Shear shares his perspective on how AI will impact different business sectors, particularly distinguishing between B2B and consumer applications. He emphasizes that AI's transformative potential lies in its ability to reimagine experiences for consumers, while B2B applications focus more on practical capabilities.

Key Points:

• Consumer vs B2B AI Impact:

  • In B2B SaaS, the experience isn't the product - reimagining the experience doesn't necessarily reopen a segment
  • In consumer products, the experience IS the product - reimagining an experience completely reopens the segment

• AI's Impact on Consumer Products:

  • Creates opportunity to reimagine how consumer experiences can work from the ground up
  • Similar to how mobile changed everything, AI will force reconsideration of every consumer segment
  • Consumer products can be completely reinvented because the experience is what people are buying

• Database-Driven Businesses:

  • Many businesses are essentially databases with systems of record (like Yelp)
  • AI enables inversion: raw data (video, images) can be primary, with metadata extracted as needed
  • Instead of structured data entry, AI can extract insights from unstructured content

• Example of Transformation:

  • Current: Yelp stores structured data about restaurants
  • Future: Could store raw videos of experiences, with AI extracting specific details on demand
  • New queries possible without recollecting data (e.g., noise levels from existing videos)

• Business Impact:

  • Levels playing field between incumbents and startups
  • Makes previously valuable structured data potentially worthless
  • Opens opportunities for dramatic disruption in established markets
  • Could 10x the size of certain segments by making them more accessible or valuable

• Future Product Design:

  • Products might start with camera open instead of forms
  • Focus on capturing raw experiences rather than structured data entry
  • AI enables real-time extraction of insights from unstructured content