Process Notes

CeremonyLM:
A Community Language Model

KEY WORDS:

tools, thinking, space, work, conversation, idea, problem, systems, guess, build, mental models, love, mrp, feel, connect, questions, life, understand, solve, tool sets

This reflection was from June 28, 2024.

Artist, turned experience designer, turned storytelling producer with a passion for ideas bigger than what we think is possible. Shawn Hewitt has over 25 years experience leading the conceptualization, developmentand delivery of innovative solutions and content mixed with an ability to craft the unexpected.

He is an award winning, visionary, and passionate people leader helping organizations (private and public) work better for people by harnessing disruptive technology, and a passion for human-centered innovation. Shawn’s education credentials are as follows, Master of Design in Strategic Foresight and Innovation (MDes), Certified Training and Development Practitioner (CTDP), Project Management Professional (PMP), and a diploma in Marketing Management. Shawn’s awards include the 2004 Canadian Music Week Fan Choice Award and the 2019 Advancing Innovation Award from the Ontario Public Service.

As co-principle, creative director, executive producer of Creative Hewman Inc, Shawn leads the development of innovative digital experiences, platforms, and novel storytelling concepts.

Katie and Shawn discussed the importance of authenticity and flexibility in the rapidly evolving AI and machine learning landscape. They emphasized the need for continuous learning and understanding human needs rather than just technical proficiency. They highlighted the challenges of managing overwhelming information and the necessity of adapting to new tools without being overly reliant on specific technologies. They also touched on the environmental impact of AI, the importance of user research, and the potential for individualized AI agents to collaborate. The conversation concluded with a focus on the need for diverse perspectives and the balance between social innovation and capitalistic pursuits.

Raw and Authentic Approach to the Meeting

• Katie and Shawn discuss the importance of a raw and authentic approach to the meeting, emphasizing the need to let the conversation flow naturally. 
• Katie reflects on a past conversation with her friend Eske, noting the intuitive nature of their unstructured interview style.
• Shawn agrees with the approach, highlighting the intention behind it and the trust in the process.
• Katie appreciates the intentionality and trust in the approach, noting the importance of intuition in the conversation.

Managing Overwhelm in Machine Learning

• Katie shares her feelings of overwhelm from starting machine learning courses and the media coverage of AI.
• Shawn links the discussion back to an email about defining expertise and setting expectations, emphasizing the need to understand the tools and industry leaders.
• Shawn explains the importance of being a problem-solving agency and learning through mistakes and observations.
• Katie relates to the idea of ongoing learning and vulnerability, noting the challenges of committing to ongoing learning.

Flexibility and Adaptability in Expertise

• Shawn introduces the concept of literacy in the 21st century, emphasizing the ability to learn, unlearn, and relearn.
• Katie agrees, noting the importance of flexibility and the ability to adapt to societal changes.
• Shawn discusses the broader societal pressures beyond the tech space, such as inflation and mental health support.
• Katie reflects on the challenges of designing adaptable and generative systems, sharing a recent design thinking session with college students.

Creative Computational Thinking

• Katie and Shawn discuss the intersection of creative and computational thinking, noting the challenges of applying logic to emotion and messiness.

• Shawn emphasizes the importance of understanding human needs and motivations in the development process.
• Katie shares her thoughts on the polarity of systems and the need to scope projects realistically.
• Shawn suggests the term "creative computational thinking" to describe the marriage of both worlds.

Balancing Structure and Flexibility

• Katie expresses the need for structure in meetings and conversations, while also appreciating the flexibility of the current approach.
• Shawn reassures Katie that structure is important for progressing work, but also emphasizes the need for flexibility.
• Katie considers integrating her MDes MRP (major research project) methodology into her work, balancing philosophical questions with practical applications.

An exerpt from my MRP (2024): 

The challenge for many co-creation groups is preserving the co-existence of multiple stories. It’s resisting the urge to cling onto one story to move a group forward. Natalie Loveless (2019) in the manifesto, How to Make Art at the End of the World says, “Stories are wondrous in their capacity to reorganize our approaches to our social-material worlds; they are dangerous for their capacity to produce themselves as compelling objects of belief, naturalized, as all too many of us see year in and year out in the classroom, into calcified truths.”

Attempting to collaborate with the multitudes and validity of experiences sounds overwhelming, and it might be, but it does not have to be immobilizing.  

Loveless (2019), turns to academics King and Haraway’s respective works on stories to ask:

• How are we remade by all we speak and hear?
  

• How are we remade through all we touch and are touched by?

In response to these questions, I came up with a conceptual model to visualize the complexity of co-creation. I might expand on this in another reflection, but for reference, this was the model: 



To dive deeper into my MRP, you can find it here. 

• Shawn discusses the importance of understanding human problems and motivations in the development process.

Challenges for Programmers in the New AI Landscape

• Shawn shares insights on the challenges faced by programmers who feel their skills are becoming obsolete due to new AI capabilities.
• Shawn emphasizes the importance of understanding human needs and motivations, placing individuals with a software development background into discovery roles.
• Katie relates to the idea of holistic processes and the repercussions of actions in the tech space.
• Shawn discusses the importance of immersing oneself in the spaces being solved for and co-designing with users.

Dieter Rams from Rams (2018 documentary)

FOMO and the Pressure to Keep Up

• Shawn discusses the pressure of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) in the tech space, noting the hysteria around new tools and technologies.

• Katie reflects on the challenges of embracing ambiguity and being wrong in the process.
• Shawn emphasizes the importance of foresight and not getting trapped in the moment, focusing on long-term solutions and leveraging new tools.
• Katie appreciates the balance between staying nimble and not getting overwhelmed by the rapid pace of technological change.

The Role of Behavioral Science in Understanding Tools

• Shawn discusses the importance of applying behavioral science to understand tools and human behavior.
• Katie reflects on the challenges of human behavior and the need to embrace fragility in adapting to new technologies.

• Shawn emphasizes the importance of understanding human motivations and biases in the development process.

• Katie shares her thoughts on the environmental impact of AI and the need for overarching policies to address it.

Rapid Prototyping and User Journeys

• Shawn discusses the importance of rapid prototyping and user journey mapping in the development process.
• Katie reflects on the idea of failure and the importance of iterative learning in prototyping.

• Shawn emphasizes the need for execution and iteration, rather than just having great ideas.
  

• Katie connects the lessons of prototyping to personal relationships and the importance of evolving together.

The Future is Already Here

• Shawn shares a quote by William Gibson, "The future is already here, it's just not evenly distributed yet,"

  and its relevance to the current tech landscape.

• Katie reflects on the accountability that comes with the idea of the future being now and the actions it inspires.

• Shawn emphasizes the importance of making meaningful tools for each person and finding niche areas to support.
• Katie appreciates the conversation and the shared value set, noting the importance of seeking out diverse perspectives.
  

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PROJECT

Ceremony is a web platform that hosts an evolving catalogue of community conversations. The content is designed to bring together works by both professional and emerging artists. This project will build a live language model with the catalogue, allowing readers to participate in the creation of art via an interface designed with equity and accessibility in mind. The project aims to democratize digital tools, increase digital and data literacy through discussion, and pave the way for other creative and accessible AI applications within the artistic community.