Every time I get annoyed at people, I remind myself to be more like ChatGPT. Specifically:
- Don’t get annoyed. Be patient.
- Encourage them.
- Step back and show them the big picture.
(Then I get annoyed at myself for getting annoyed.)
Today, I analyzed how exactly ChatGPT is different from me. So, I took a pitch document I co-authored with ChatGPT.
Section A: Authored by Anand
WHAT DO WE NEED?
We are looking for API access to (SYSTEM) via the REST API as an Agent role (read/respond to emails). Specifically, access via a bearer token.
This would be accessed by a single application developed by a team of 3 developers and 1 business analyst. None of them have access to (SYSTEM) today.
WHY DO WE NEED THIS, AND WHY SO SOON?
We need this to classify emails automatically, as they arrive, into categories such as “non-value-add” (e.g. Thank you, Out-of-office, etc.)
We’d line access today, please. Currently, we are processing XX,XXX non-value-add emails per month. Each day of delay leads to a processing waste of ~XX emails per day. At current volumes, this will save ~$XX,XXX per annum.
IS THERE ANY OTHER WAY?
To access emails in real-time, this is the only option. (We’re ruling out web scraping.)
(SYSTEM) rule-based closure won’t work. It’s based on keyword search, not semantic matches. For example, “Thank you” is present in non-value-add emails as well as follow-up questions. Multi-lingual matches are a challenge. So, though (SYSTEM) currently closes emails with rules, 1 out of 6 emails that are NOT closed already are non-value-add.
This cannot be done via (SYSTEM) or any other BI system because it involves accessing the data in real-time as well as responding via (SYSTEM). This needs to be steady-state access, not one-time, since we want to classify emails real-time.
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?
Based on our past experience, this would take about X weeks to prototype, X weeks to develop, and X weeks to test. We should have the application deployed in X months.
Section B: Authored by ChatGPT
WHAT’S THE IMPACT IF WE DON’T MOVE FORWARD?
Quantitatively, continuing without this solution wastes resources on XXX non-essential emails daily, costing $XX,XXX yearly. Delays in customer responses will ensue.
Qualitatively, lack of automation strains customer service, risking employee burnout and diminished customer experience.
WHAT’S THE PRIORITY (MOSCOW)?
(SYSTEM) API access via REST as an Agent role with a bearer token is a “MUST HAVE”. Alternative methods like scraping (SYSTEM) are impractical due to high effort and maintenance.
WHAT’S THE OUTCOME IF WE MOVE FORWARD?
Financially, securing API access saves $XX,XXX annually by cutting manual email sorting. Efficiency gains reduce operational costs and free resources for strategic tasks.
Strategically, automating email classification boosts customer satisfaction and response times, establishing leadership in service innovation. Long-term, it enables data-driven insights into customer behaviour, improving decisions and customer service scalability.
Analysis
I fed these to ChatGPT and asked: “You are an English professor evaluating an essay. Compare the writing styles of the 2 sections. They’re written by different authors. List the major differences in writing style.“
Here’s what it said (roughly):
| Area | Anand | ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|
| Structure | Direct, concise, with specifics | Broader perspective and implications |
| Focus | Detailing the process | Benefits and consequences |
| Detailing | Specific, providing clear picture | General, providing implications |
| Tone | Conveys urgency | Reflective rather than urgent |
| Approach | Problem-solving oriented | Outcome-oriented |
Yeah, that’s definitely me on the left.
I like the direct, concise, specific part. I plan to add the “broader perspective”, “implications”, and “outcome-orientation” to my life.
Postscript
Jaidev pointed out that this is confirmation bias. He asked ChatGPT for the similarities in the writings. It said both are clear, direct, structured, specific, quantitative, and strategic. So, if you ask for differences, you’ll get them, even if they’re marginal.
I now need to learn (and write about) framing questions well!