Welcome to “Work Forward,” I’m your host [Name]. Today we’re diving into Cal Newport’s “AI and Work: Some Predictions.”

Right now, the first “killer app” of generative AI isn’t text writing—it’s smart search. As Newport notes, “smart search has become the first killer app of the generative AI era,” letting you ask a question and get back concise summaries, tables, or charts without sifting through pages of results.

Meanwhile, coding is getting an AI boost. Novice developers can spin up prototypes with ChatGPT, but as computer scientist Judah Diament reminds us, “they all broke down when anything slightly complicated or unusual needs to be done.” Seasoned programmers aren’t panicking—they use AI tools more as helpers than replacements.

Looking ahead, the next big wave will be natural language interfaces inside software. Imagine telling your spreadsheet, “Remove rows under ten dollars, sort by name, and enlarge the font,” and it just happens.

And what about agents or AGI? Newport quips the true test is “an AI system that can successfully empty my email inbox.” That day’s not here yet, and superintelligence by 2030 seems hype. The disruptive change is happening now—and it’s centered on search, code, and conversation.
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