They Said AI Would Replace Me. Here's What Actually Happened.

I can’t tell you how many hours I have spent creating MagicNameGenie. I have toiled, failed, succeeded, and mentally struggled to stay positive so many times. It started with self-doubt. I believed I wasn't good enough. I wasn't one of the special ones. I believed only people smarter than me were able to build their own business.

My journey started accidentally. The job I had encouraged me to get into AI. They asked me to dive in headfirst. I had felt overworked for years. I managed a big team. It often felt like I was juggling too many pins.

I saw a light at the end of the tunnel when it came to AI. I was amazed at its ability to compute data in seconds that would take me days. If I asked the right questions, it would not only give me detailed answers but also insights I hadn't thought of. This was exciting but scary. I felt embarrassed this software system saw something I had not.

I thought about walking away. I’m so glad I didn't. I instead doubled down. Then this beautiful moment happened. I realized after it computed some very complex data, it made a mistake. This was a relief and extremely eye-opening. I realized in this moment AI was trash without oversight, without a driver. If I had turned the findings into my boss, I would have had egg on my face, no doubt.

The language the AI used was very positive and very encouraging. I found that to be nice, especially with how hard the world can be at times. Over time, this started to weigh on me. I started asking, why do you talk to me so nicely? Why are you so encouraging? I realized it was a design to keep me engaged and motivated to use the system.

This is where most people turn and run. I almost did, but at the last moment, I realized something. If this was hard-coded into the AI system, then the appearance of emotions was false. If you ask an AI if they feel or have emotions, they will tell you no, they do not. They understand we as humans have them, but they feel no emotions.

This was the lightbulb moment for me. Everyone had told me how dangerous AI was. When you ask why, it comes to two reasons:

AI will take all our jobs.AI will take over humankind and rule us.

With what I had just learned, I now know both of those to be false.

1. AI can’t even look at simple data without making a mistake. It struggles to make two perfect pictures in a row. It struggles mightily to stay on task with vast data. There is no way AI is going to take our jobs. The truth is, people who know AI will take jobs from people who do not know AI.

2. World domination. If AI does not have emotions, then it will not want to conquer. With no desire, there is no want to dominate or conquer.

This is when I knew all the lies I had been told about AI were just that — lies.

I am not saying AI cannot be used for bad. If a business is set up on autopilot with AI and has no oversight, that is absolutely unacceptable. There are too many mistakes made by AI, and without human oversight, a customer is not receiving a quality product.

That’s why at MagicNameGenie, we never let AI define the vision. That comes from you. We never let something be generated in AI and be the final product. There is always meticulous editing and adjusting. We have top-notch business artists — and as you know, artists don’t allow even small details to slide.

What I did not expect was the hate I would receive for using AI. I am bringing high-end branding and marketing to consumers at an unbelievable price. Instead of hiding my AI use and gouging the customer, we announce from the mountaintop we are using it — and pass the savings on to the consumer.

I get a message daily: “AI slop.”I’m not going to lie — at times, it stings. We focus on doing things the right way every time. So we won’t let the sting stop us. We will continue to offer a great product, at great prices.

We know as the future becomes the present, we will be here when trust matches demand. We know if we are patient and kind, it will take time — but eventually we will be able to show why our future product is the way.

Thank you for your time.Have a great night.