Election Day is tomorrow. Here’s our guide for strategic communicators.

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

November 4, 2024

Conversations have been underway for companies to align on their approach to election communications. When do we need to say something? What should we say and to whom? 

As Kara Swisher put it last week at the PRovoke Global 2024 Summit, “we have a lot of information but not a lot of facts.”

What’s next: We’ve prepared a practical checklist to review with communications teams and leadership to ensure there is a process in place to monitor and address potential scenarios.

1. Prepare for a period of uncertainty.

On Election Day: 

  • Most news organizations and analysts do not expect the presidential election result to be clear for several days – or even weeks. 
  • This year, 43 states will allow county officials to pre-process mail-in ballots, which could speed up the vote count on Election Day. However, in some key swing states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, mail-in ballots cannot be tallied before polls close.

After Election Day: 

  • High tension tied to vote counts, potential litigation and possible dual declarations of victory could lead to protests or political violence. 
  • Prioritize internal communications to reassure employees, and provide resources and time off (or flexibility to work from home) to help them navigate unfolding events, as appropriate.
  • Evaluate any events or activities that might need to be postponed, such as leadership conferences, media interviews, social media and marketing campaigns. If they don’t need to happen this week, consider pressing pause. 
  • Prepare your executives for inevitable questions about the election outcome during media interviews, events and internal forums. 

Once a winner is declared:

When it becomes clear which candidate will take office, bring internal stakeholders back together to discuss policy implications. 

  • Business: How will the election impact your business operations? Do you operate in a highly regulated industry? If so, what are the near-term policy shifts to monitor?
  • Community: What is the potential impact on the communities where you operate? How will your organization prepare for the new administration’s policies?

2. Refer to this checklist for communications tactics + considerations.

Activate your election plan:

  • Monitoring: Kick off monitoring and update leadership on how the communications team will report on election-related events.
  • Core response team: Gather key decision makers on whether and how to respond to emerging situations. Use pre-scheduled team check-ins to address key issues, public dialogue and if/when to take action.
  • Internal first: Prioritize updates to employees, people leaders and/or employee resource group (ERG) leads. Focus on a communications cascade to reach the entire organization, as appropriate. A tailored approach should be taken to engage global workforces.  
  • Media and advertising: Pause proactive media/advertising on Election Day and immediately after, as determined by the core response team.
  • Outbound communications: Evaluate outbound newsletters and digital/social content to ensure messages are strategically sound and sensitive to the external environment. 
  • External engagement: Stay close to upcoming events or speaking engagements involving your key executives through November. 
  • Misinformation response: Be prepared to respond to misinformation and disinformation if it has a clear impact on your business or employees.

3. Leverage a message bank for rapid response. 

Each organization will respond differently to election-related scenarios, but there are a few common threads. Stay focused on your most important key messages:

  1. Reassure your stakeholders – especially employees – that you’re looking out for them. Provide opportunities for them to feel heard. 
  2. Emphasize respect for all views across the political spectrum, and connect to the organization’s values.
  3. Whichever candidate takes office, advocate for common sense policies that support your mission.
  4. Be empathetic and acknowledge that the situation is uncomfortable and unsettling for many.

4. “Do” before you say.

In the run-up to the election, few companies have commented publicly. Post-election, most will focus on internal communications – but significant events involving their workforce, business operations and/or shareholders may compel them to make public statements. 

Considering all the tactics covered above, remember: 

  • Take care of your people first.
  • Evaluate the external environment before engaging publicly.
  • Determine the benefits and weigh the risks.

Refer to your current events rubric or other standard criteria to determine who needs to hear from you and whether/when/where to communicate.

  • Is the evolving situation relevant to your mission?
  • Does it align with or run counter to your core values?
  • Would your POV lead to meaningful change?
  • Will speaking out externally support your key stakeholders, especially your employees?

Global Gateway Advisors prepares and supports clients navigating current events and emerging business issues.

To discuss your organization’s post-election communications strategy, connect with us on LinkedIn or via our website.

by Global Gateway Advisors

DEI is divisive and dynamic. Here is what's next.

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

October 28, 2024

1. After almost a year of anti-DEI rhetoric and backlash, where do we stand?

With many news headlines highlighting DEI cutbacks and the “anti-woke” narrative, it can be challenging to discern between clickbait and constructive criticism.

In this newsletter, we discuss the current state of the dialogue, considerations for ongoing employee engagement, and how strategic communicators can prepare their organizations for the future.

What’s happening:

  • Several Fortune 500 companies, including Ford, John Deere, and Lowe’s scaled back their DEI commitments in response to anti-DEI activists like Robby Starbuck.
  • Other companies, including Jack Daniels’ parent company Brown-Forman, scrapped them entirely following “anti-woke” boycotts (which, following an ad featuring a transgender influencer, cost Budweiser’s parent company 13% of U.S. revenue).
  • On the flip side, CEOs of companies like JPMorgan Chase, Cytokinetics and e.l.f. Beauty have asserted that DEI is a business driver, and advocates including NAACP, National Organization of Women, Human Rights Campaign and others have issued statements in defense of DEI.


Why it matters: Research consistently demonstrates that diverse and inclusive teams are more innovative and achieve higher profitability. At a time when stakeholders are increasingly divided, companies will need to define an approach that best supports their business goals. 

What’s next: We are seeing more nuanced, less publicized approaches to DEI emerging. Strategic communication is crucial to engage key stakeholders, maintain trust in an organization’s commitments, and safeguard reputation.

2. Take stock: What are stakeholders saying?

The big picture: In a hyper-politicized environment, with just 11 days until the presidential election, many employers, civil rights advocates, and employees are standing firm: DEI is good for business.

What employers are saying: 

  • In September, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said: “It’s good for business; it’s morally right; we’re quite good at it; we’re successful,” speaking about the company’s outreach to minority groups. (Dimon also clarified that he’s not “‘woke.”) 
  • Robert Blum, president and CEO of Cytokinetics, earlier this month said, “We cannot ensure the health of our population by taking a one-size-fits-all approach. We are a diverse nation with different health needs, and our health care system must reflect that.” 
  • “Today, more than ever, diversity is essential for strong corporate governance,” said Tarang Amin, chairman and CEO of e.l.f. Beauty, surrounding the launch of the Not-So-White Paper, which underscores the business case for diverse boardrooms.


What civil rights leaders are saying: 

  • The NAACP, the National Organization for Women, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Asian Americans Advancing Justice and the Human Rights Campaign Foundation issued an open letter to leaders of Fortune 1000 companies. The letter cautioned that “abandoning DEI will have long-term consequences on business success.” 
  • The Congressional Black Caucus Foundation called for continued action through its Corporate Accountability Report on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.


What employees are saying:

  • 61% of adults think DEI programs in the workplace are “a good thing,” according to a 2023 Washington Post-Ipsos poll. 
  • 72% of LGBTQ+ workers reported that a rollback of their employer’s DEI efforts would make them feel less included or accepted.

4. To sustain employee engagement, lean into proven approaches that foster inclusion.

Companies with diverse and inclusive workplaces are 8 times more likely to achieve better business outcomes. DEI fuels creativity and helps meet the demands of a market where demographics are changing rapidly. 

As organizations refine their DEI strategies, experts emphasize the importance of inclusive workplaces where employees are seen and heard. 

  • Mentorship: Employees with formal mentors are 75% more likely to believe their organization offers a clear career development plan. 
  • Employee affinity groups: Companies have started to compensate leaders of employee affinity groups with pay, time, and stock – recognizing their critical role in fostering belonging.
  • Mental health: Deloitte’s 2024 Women at Work survey highlights the growing concern around mental health in the workplace. Communicating openly about mental health and reducing stigma can build trust. 
  • Allyship: Allyship involves actively supporting, amplifying, and advocating for others. Successful allyship programs bridge education and action, giving companies a competitive advantage. 


What’s next: Some companies have partnered with organizations like Seramount to measure inclusion and belonging through employee sentiment surveys, and then use the data to tailor their approaches.

5. Here’s what strategic communicators should know.

Even companies that double down on their DEI initiatives should acknowledge that long-term success will require continuous learning and adaptation.

At Global Gateway Advisors, we partner with clients to understand the landscape and determine when and how they can show up for stakeholders in a meaningful way. 

Go deeper:

  • Prioritize your audiences’ needs: Collect data that will shed light on employee, consumer, and stakeholder sentiment. 
  • Evaluate language: Explore whether alternative language approaches are needed to advance your business/organizational goals.
  • Mitigate risk: Shape an issues management strategy that helps your organization prepare for potential legal or external pressure. 
  • Focus on inclusion: Develop communications and programs that ensure employees feel they belong and that all viewpoints are heard, respected, and valued.
  • Demonstrate commitment: Transparently share progress updates on DEI to build trust and bring more people along.
  • Stay informed: The DEI landscape changes daily. Establish monitoring and insights processes to help your organization think ahead. 

Want to know more? Connect with Global Gateway Advisors on LinkedIn.

by Global Gateway Advisors

The state of mental health equity at work

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors
Workplace mental health advocate Natasha Bowman, JD, SPHR speaks with Carol Harrison, President + Senior Partner at Global Gateway Advisors

May 30, 2024

The escalating mental health crisis impacts all of us in different ways.

  • Mental health is the chief health concern among U.S. adults, surpassing cancer, stress, obesity, and drug abuse.

  • But the U.S. is not alone. It is part of a global trend. Across 31 countries recently polled, an average of 44% said that mental health was their country’s top health concern.

Why it matters: Work amplifies broader societal issues that negatively affect mental health, especially among diverse communities, including discrimination and inequality. Yet, stigma and shame remain around discussing or disclosing mental health in work settings. Prioritizing mental health equity for employees is a critical forward-looking talent strategy.

Go deeper: During Mental Health Month, Global Gateway Advisors and CommPro convened a group of business, government and advocacy leaders to exchange ideas about how to address mental health equity in the workplace. The event featured special guest and workplace mental health advocate, Natasha Bowman, JD, SPHR.

Here are our key takeaways.

1. Mental health is essential to thriving workplaces.

By the numbers:

  • One in five employees globally manage a diagnosable mental health condition in any given year.

  • One in three U.S. workers said their jobs had a somewhat negative or extremely negative impact on their mental health.

  • Poor mental health at work can contribute to a decline in productivity, toxic workplace culture, higher rates of attrition and economic loss.

  • Mental health issues cost the US economy $47.6 billion annually in lost productivity (up to 12 unplanned absences a year).

What they’re saying:

  • “If your employees are mentally happy, they will stay longer, they will work better. We must think about mental health as an investment in our organizations.” – Jackson Budinger, Senior Director of Communications, Trevor Project

2. There is no one size fits all solution.

Every employee has unique experiences and identities that shape their perspective and affect how they approach mental health.

Employees experience significantly better mental health and engagement outcomes when their unique social identities are acknowledged and supported.

  • 34% of employees aged 18-29 and 28% of employees 30-49 reported that they considered quitting work due to the impact on mental health. Only 21% of employees aged 50-64 said the same.

  • Neurodivergent, LGBTQIA+ and Hispanic employees want more preventative support when it comes to their mental health.

  • Only one in three Black adults in the United States who need mental health care actually receive it.

What they’re saying:

  • “We are all on different mental health journeys. Creative and flexible accommodations empower employees to manage their mental health and wellbeing – and show up effectively at work.” – Natasha Bowman

  • “Carefully look at the composition of your team. For generation Alpha, it is easier to talk about mental health than Boomers. If you have a team with more Hispanic men, it will be tougher to talk about mental health, because it is not a part of their cultural ethos. It’s important to have a bespoke approach because people have different generational and cultural challenges.” – Event participant

3. Lack of communication and stigma stand in the way.

By the numbers:

  • 74% of full-time employees in the US say it is appropriate to discuss mental health concerns at work, yet only 58% say they feel comfortable.

  • 79% say that their work experience would be better if their leaders communicated they care about mental wellbeing.

What they’re saying:

  • “As I started to share my experience navigating bipolar disorder, one of the common themes I heard from people is that they thought I was brave and courageous to share my story. Many said they wanted to, but were afraid of what their employer would say. The stigma surrounding mental health at work prevents people from talking about it at all.” – Natasha Bowman 

4. Strategic communications can improve mental health and foster thriving workplaces.

Measure mental health. In the same way employers measure employee engagement, they can also measure employees’ mental health at work. Data can reveal how mental health impacts employees differently depending on where they’re based, their socio-cultural background and other demographics.

  • Using data and insights, employers can define what resources are needed – and how communications can help point employees to the right support.

Engage leadership to break down stigma through storytelling. When a senior leader opens up about their experiences with mental health, it can make employees with shared experiences feel seen and heard.

  • As Carmella Glover, Vice President, Head of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Page Society, said: “It takes one brave person and their story to move people and create a safe space. There is power in storytelling, so people know they are not alone.”

Provide clear, actionable messaging around mental health. “We need a ‘stop, drop, and roll’ for the steps to take when someone in your life needs you. This is one of the important communications challenges in mental health equity,” said Erika Soto Lamb, Vice President, Social Impact Strategy at Showtime/MTV Entertainment Studios at Paramount Global. “That’s why we partnered with Active Minds to launch a.s.k, or acknowledge, support, keep-in-touch.”

  • Through creative messaging and employee engagement strategies, we can make resources more accessible to employees and provide actionable guidance for what to do when support is needed.

Ensure that conversations around mental health are inclusive of all backgrounds, cultures, abilities and perspectives.

  • “A person may need mental health Tuesday instead of Friday,” said Natasha Bowman. “Off-the-shelf policies do not work because they’re inflexible and not inclusive.”

  • The same goes for communications. As we shape communications to advance mental health equity at work, it is important to bring diverse stakeholders to the table, amplify stories that demonstrate the wide array of experiences a person can have with their mental health, and showcase how resources and solutions can be tailored to support employees’ unique needs.

Want to continue the conversation? Connect with Global Gateway Advisors on LinkedIn or get in touch via our website.

by Global Gateway Advisors

MEDIA NEWS + MOVES

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

Navigating a Fast-Changing Landscape

May 14, 2024

1. Industry continues to struggle, but finds a new way forward

The big picture: Layoffs continue, as advertisers pull back, social media algorithms change, and demand declines. News fatigue has set in, while trust in the media has reached a new low.

Yes, but: 2024 is different in a pivotal way. The U.S. presidential election is upon us. Some in the media business are bracing for a “Trump bump,” a surge of public interest and subscription revenue generated around the election. 

What else? Media resources are being channeled toward AI, which is expected to transform the responsibilities and processes of journalists, broadcasters, creatives and advertisers to cut costs and complement storytelling. 

In this edition:

  • The lay of the land for traditional media
  • How to rethink media strategies and land impactful stories
  • Major reporter and editor moves from the past few months

2. Mainstream journalism stalwarts face AI “coopetition”

Job losses among print, digital, and broadcast news organizations increased by nearly 50% in 2023, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas.

  • The pace has only accelerated in 2024. Fast Company tracked staff reductions at the Los Angeles Times, NBC News, Sports Illustrated, Time, Business Insider, and other prominent publications. 
  • The union representing Conde Nast journalists reached an agreement this week for $3.3 million in total wage increases. The agreement follows a round of 250 layoffs last November.

As newsrooms continue to shrink, however, “coopetition” between the news industry and AI is intensifying.

  • Thomson Reuters CEO Steve Hasker said that the international news wire has an $8 billion war chest to spend on acquisitions and investments in AI. “These models need to be fed,” Hasker said. “And they may as well be fed by the highest-quality, independent fact-based content. We have done a number of those deals, and we’re exploring the potential there.”
  • Axios CEO Jim VandeHei said AI will “eviscerate the weak, the ordinary, the unprepared in media.” Axios is leaning into live events, a membership program centered on its star journalists and an expansion of subscription newsletters.
  • The New York Times this week finalized its AI initiatives team, tasked with “leveraging generative artificial intelligence and other forms of machine learning for the benefit of our journalists and readers.” The team’s initial focus is machine-assisted reporting tactics, while ensuring effective and responsible AI use.
  • Axel Springer paved the way for AI-news partnerships, as it cut a deal with OpenAI for annual payments in exchange for the use of its publications’ digital archives. Other publications took note and started their own partnerships. Financial Times is partnering with OpenAI to enhance ChatGPT with attributed content and incorporate FT journalism into prompts and responses. Dotdash Meredith also agreed to license its content across publications to train ChatGPT.

But not not all publishers are embracing third-party AI tools:

  • The New York Times sued OpenAI in December for copyright infringement, asking for “billions of dollars in statutory and actual damages.” The Times has spent over $1 million to date on the lawsuit.
  • Eight newspapers (prominent regional dailies) owned by Alden Global Capital are also suing OpenAI and Microsoft for copyright infringement and diluted trademark claims. There is potential for over 60 newspapers to join the suit. 

3. Explore new avenues for media engagement

  • The infamous HARO (Help A Reporter Out, powered by Cision) shut down earlier this year, but its creator is back with a new database for media inquiries. Meet HERO (Help Every Reporter Out). HERO averages 20 inquiries per issue, from journalists at the Today Show, Washington Post, USA Today, Business Insider and more looking for sources. HERO is now partnered with MuckRack to verify all sources and integrate the two platforms together.
  • Startup publications we’re watching:
    • Semafor: Founded in 2022, the site is rapidly expanding and still very much in the startup phase. Semafor is actively recruiting top-tier reporters and last month hosted the World Economy Summit, where over 100 interviews took place.
    • The 19th: Since 2020, The 19th has created digital, newsletter and event content that empowers women and the LGBTQ+ community.
    • 404 Media: Founded by alums from Motherboard/VICE, 404 explores how technology is shaping and is shaped by society. The outlet’s current focus is on digital news and podcasts.
    • Puck: Covering the “intersection of Wall Street, Washington, Silicon Valley, and Hollywood,” Puck has scaled its newsletter reach while also producing podcasts for The Ringer and Audacy.

4. Editor and reporter moves to watch 

Below are some of the big media shakeups from the first few months of the year. As editors and reporters transition to different roles, remember that relationships are #1. Reach out to schedule briefings and stay on their radar, and keep up with their new beats.

  • Diane Brady, executive director of Fortune Live Media and editorial director of Fortune CEO Initiative (previous: assistant managing editor, Forbes) (PR Newswire)
  • Sharon Goldman, AI reporter, Fortune (previous: senior writer, VentureBeat) (X)
  • Brad Stone, editor, Bloomberg Businessweek (previous: senior executive editor) (New York Times)
  • Dana Wollman, senior technology editor, Bloomberg (previous: editor-in-chief, Engadget) (X)
  • Phoebe Connelly, senior editor for AI strategy and innovation, Washington Post (previous: Next Generation Initiative Lead) (Washington Post)
  • Laura McGann, senior editor, Washington Post (previous: executive editor, Grid) (X)
  • Christina Passariello, San Francisco bureau chief, CNBC (previous: deputy business editor, Washington Post) (Talking Biz News)
  • Laura Reston, deputy op-ed editor, New York Times (previous: senior editor) (Editor and Publisher)
  • Gabriela Riccardi, news editor, Quartz (previous: section editor, Quartz) (X)
  • Julie Bort, VC/startups editor, TechCrunch (previous: editor-at-large, Business Insider (Talking Biz News)
  • Cassie McGrath, healthcare reporter, Healthcare Brew (previous: reporter, Boston Business Journal) (X)

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors

Multicolored arrows on a dark surface as a symbol of teamwork and unity.

Are corporate DEI efforts actually retreating?

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

March 19, 2024

Recent headlines suggest companies have pulled back on their DEI commitments, reflecting a shift from the social justice movement of 2020 to a muted environment after the Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in 2023. The research shows a more complex reality.

  • Businesses are balancing their investments – and how they communicate about these initiatives – to avoid legal issues and unwanted public scrutiny.
  • It’s also important to separate workplace DEI, which centers around building an internal culture of inclusion, from ESG, a set of standards geared toward an investor audience.

As other defining issues, ranging from AI strategy to election year politics, capture companies’ attention, this edition will help communications leaders provide better counsel to their organizations on DEI topics.

1. Affirmative action ruling had immediate impact on corporate DEI

The big picture: Fortune 100 companies are navigating a shift in how diversity, equity and inclusion programs can operate.

  • In June 2023, the Supreme Court ended race-based affirmative action in higher education. Republican attorneys general have raised concerns about DEI initiatives in corporations and warned against making race-based hiring decisions.

  • Companies have since faced complaints and litigation related to their DEI initiatives.

Go deeper: Based on analysis before the SCOTUS decision, legal experts anticipated that a ruling against affirmative action would lead to scrutiny of DEI programs in the workplace.

  • This prediction held true. Companies have traditionally argued that diversity strengthens the workforce, similar to affirmative action in universities. The Supreme Court’s decision weakened the legitimate grounds for these programs, so businesses that have maintained their stance on DEI are now working to avoid drawing legal scrutiny.

What else: A new case before the Supreme Court, Muldrow v. City of St. Louis, is worth monitoring. A female police sergeant alleged that she was reassigned to a less prestigious role because she is a woman.

  • If the court widens its judgment beyond job transfers, development and retention programs specifically for women or people of color may be subject to change.

Why it matters: Companies are examining their DEI programs more closely to ensure they comply with the changing legal landscape. Employers can proactively adapt to this shift and continue building a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture.

2. Align DEI initiatives to measurable outcomes

The big picture: Companies are more clearly aligning DEI commitments to business goals.

  • Mentions of ESG and DEI in shareholder proposals and boardrooms may be down, but a recent Littler study indicates ongoing commitment among most large companies.

  • This is further supported by a Purpose Brand finding that 154 Fortune 500 companies released diversity disclosures in 2023, nearly double the 79 produced in 2022.

  • All eyes will be on the diversity reports published in 2024, as they will likely reflect the broader industry trend of companies “reassessing verbiage and DEI endeavors that could bring legal risk.”

Go deeper: The Littler survey also reveals a potential disconnect between chief diversity officers (CDO) and chief legal officers (CLO) regarding how their perspectives and goals for DEI have diverged in the current climate.

  • While 57% of CDOs say their organization is defining metrics for DEI progress, just 19% of CLOs say the same. This highlights the need for stronger alignment within top leadership regarding DEI goals and measurement.

What else: 91% of C-suite leaders say the Supreme Court ruling has not lessened their DEI prioritization.

  • A survey of organizations for McKinsey’s 2023 Women in the Workplace report showed that 60% of respondents increased DEI staffing and budgets over the past year, and 34% maintained their staffing and budgets. Only 4% reported a decrease in 2024.

  • These trends suggest that the idea of a widespread corporate retreat from DEI is likely overstated.

  • “For the companies that are very well run in this space … perhaps they changed some of their programs, perhaps they tweak some of their efforts, perhaps they changed some things. But many of them are maintaining significant commitments to this business effort,” said Karyn Twaronite, EY’s global vice chair of diversity, equity, and inclusiveness. “This isn’t a ‘let’s do it for three years and not do it anymore’ kind of program.”

Why it matters: Companies with DEI experts in senior leadership are better equipped to navigate the evolving landscape.

  • The top impact measures of DEI programs boost employee engagement and strengthen company culture, leading to greater organizational success and a positive impact on the bottom line.

  • Strong DEI leaders bring deep knowledge and core competencies to do the work, so their organizations are doubling down on it because they deliver results. They can also drive focus on the most critical culture and business metrics.

  • “Impactful work may sometimes occur quietly, but it’s still happening,” Gusto’s Emil Yeargin said at SXSW. “Celebrate daily wins and successes because the work is never done, and measure relentlessly to show impact.”

3. Build a more inclusive culture

Companies have broadened the definition of diversity, equity and inclusion to ensure that employees – regardless of how they identify – feel seen, heard, and valued.

  • They emphasize the importance of fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where people feel a sense of belonging, which is key to attracting and retaining talent, particularly in a competitive job market.

  • “I think instead of saying this is a program for Black employees, it would be more like, ‘this is a program to increase the equity of promotion rates across the firm, and everybody is included in applying to be part of this program, but will play different roles,’” said Porter Braswell, founder of 2045 Studio.

Go deeper: A report from Expanding Equity, a W.K. Kellogg Foundation program helping companies implement DEI initiatives, found that 94% of companies have zeroed in on retention, implementing at least one inclusion and belonging initiative.

  • Core DEI initiatives, such as parental leave and accessible facilities, and policies like equal pay and anti-harassment remain in place.

What else: Some firms, like Blackstone, are focusing on hiring for socioeconomic diversity and on changing job requirements to find more diverse talent without targeting a specific race or ethnicity.

  • This movement extends to disability inclusion at work: An Accenture report showed companies leading in this area see significant financial advantages, including 1.6 times more revenue, 2.6 times more net income, and 25% higher productivity.

  • “For too long, people with disabilities – individuals who are perfectly qualified and overwhelmingly willing to work – face enormous barriers to being offered a job,” said Ted Kennedy, Jr., co-chair of the Disability Equality Index.

Why it matters: The trend toward inclusion and belonging is likely to continue, ensuring employees from all backgrounds feel valued and supported at work.

4. Considerations for strategic communicators

  • Be authentic to the organization’s core values: Ensure DEI efforts and communication strategies reflect the company’s values – particularly when it comes to an emphasis on inclusion.

  • Reflect on the past + align on the future: Evaluate past public commitments around DEI and assess how the current approach reinforces those commitments. Address any disconnect among key leadership stakeholders to ensure the CEO, CDO, CLO and/or CHRO share a unified understanding and approach to DEI within the company.

  • Set a single strategic approach: Create a DEI communications strategy grounded in data and insights, and embed it across all levels of the organization. Engage affinity groups and managers to ensure everyone feels a part of the strategy.

  • Be prepared: Track current events and prepare a scenario plan to identify vulnerabilities and help the organization mitigate internal or external challenges.

  • Establish clear metrics: Regularly measure and report on progress. Transparently reporting on these metrics builds trust and reinforces the business value of an inclusive workforce.

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors

Innovations in drug discovery – and what communicators should know

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

September 5, 2023
As AI permeates business functions across nearly every industry, communicators can glean important lessons from the way each sector talks about the technological advancement and disruption in their respective fields. 

With respect to healthcare, researchers have leveraged AI in medicine for years, and we are beginning to see how life-changing treatments can reach the market much faster. 

  • The “patent cliff” – when the world’s 10 biggest drugmakers stand to lose nearly half their revenue by the end of the decade – is fast approaching. 
  • Meanwhile, more than 150 small-molecule drugs are in discovery using an AI-first approach, with more than 15 in clinical trials. The annual growth rate for that pipeline is nearly 40%, according to the Boston Consulting Group.

In this issue, we explore the evolving use of AI in drug discovery, and with it, the rising potential of real-word evidence (RWE). 

Then, we’ll evaluate the essential role that communicators play in shaping public perception and dialogue around the use of AI in drug and medical device development.

1. Moving from concept to market faster. How AI creates efficiencies in drug discovery

The big picture: Estimates vary, but it currently costs about $1 billion and takes roughly 10 years to develop a new drug, with only a fraction of them making it to the market. 

  • Change won’t be immediate. But AI can help scientists discover a drug faster by predicting how different molecules might behave in the body, and discarding dead-end compounds so promising candidates make it to clinical trials quicker.
  • While there is no shortcut in human clinical trials, AI can optimize and diversify patient pools by identifying high-potential candidates. Currently, just 5% of eligible patients participate in clinical research, which limits the ability to study drug efficacy for specific subgroups.

Go deeper: Decentralized clinical trials can facilitate patient engagement by using remote monitoring via wearable devices, which transmit real-world data (RWD) like vital signs and medication adherence to researchers. 

  • Researchers can use AI to analyze RWD for potential adverse events and safety signals, allowing earlier detection of potential drug safety issues.
  • In some cases, AI is helping drug companies bypass the animal testing stage, allowing them to use computer models of humans instead. Machine learning can also accelerate the repurposing of existing drugs, which is patentable.

What else? Rare diseases get a leg up from the Orphan Drug Tax Credit and the FDA’s fast track designation, but their small patient pools present tough challenges that discourage drugmakers from prioritizing research in this space. 

  • As a result, 95% of rare diseases have no approved treatments.
  • AI is getting better at finding subtle links in large swaths of information that even the finest minds could miss, which helps researchers repurpose drugs and develop new ones faster, even without a large sample size.

What they’re saying:

  • Eric Topol, Scripps Research Translational Institute: “There is no shortage of interest [in AI]. Every major pharma company has invested in partnerships with at least one, if not multiple, AI companies.”
  • David Ricks, Eli Lilly: “In a discovery process, you want to funnel wide. In the past, perhaps humans would just think of what they already knew about. The machine doesn’t. It just knows about everything that was there and it comes up with constructs that humans just don’t.” 
  • Tim Guilliams, Healx: “The potential to suddenly create a viable pipeline for many conditions with only a handful of patients, at the very least, gives real hope.”

Yes, but: Jim Weatherall, AstraZeneca’s VP of data science, AI and R&D, said the challenge for the next few years is pull-through, or to actually bring these drugs to market. He is otherwise optimistic: “We’ve been on a journey from ‘what is this?’ to ‘why did we ever do it any other way?’”

2. AI bolsters the pipeline from RWD to RWE

The big picture: Successful AI drug development requires high-quality, real world data, which is challenging to obtain and can be rife with privacy implications. RWD often comprises electronic health records, which present challenges at scale due to a lack of standardization (as they are collected outside the controlled environment of a clinical trial).

  • Some researchers believe the answer to these concerns could lie in synthetic data produced by applying predictive AI algorithms to RWD. In pharma, synthetic data could be used to handle large but sensitive samples, where regulatory restrictions and data privacy are involved, such as in cross-border research.
  • For now, synthetic data is a niche pursuit and hasn’t yet made its way into clinical use, largely due to concerns that it inaccurately represents the target population.


Go deeper: “The complexity and the variability in healthcare and science makes it a really hard problem to solve,” said Jim Swanson, chief information officer of Johnson & Johnson. “You can create synthetic data easily enough, but is it correlated enough to give you a specific and accurate example? That’s the problem you have to solve.”

  • As such, RWD is used increasingly throughout the drug development process, from identifying early targets to post-market safety surveillance. 
  • The ability to convert RWD to RWE using analytics is a crucial measure of success, as regulators recognize the benefits of RWE and fold them into decision-making. 
  • This is where AI comes in. Algorithms can identify patterns and relationships within RWD to produce RWE. It can then be used to predict patient outcomes and compare treatments to help researchers understand which are more effective and safe in the real-world setting.

3. Evaluating implications for communicators

The biopharma industry is on a precipice. A Morgan Stanley report estimates that even a modest improvement in early-stage drug development success rates could bring 50 novel therapies to market over 10 years.

After discovery comes the story. 

  • Communicating new science is tricky and can have a lasting negative impact if not done right. 
  • The challenge is figuring out how to communicate AI’s benefits and ethical considerations in medicine – when the first AI-developed drug eventually hits the market.

Here are five key considerations for communicators.

  1. Understand and be transparent about AI’s capabilities and limitations to build trust. Don’t shy away from the risks. 
  2. Be authentic and clear about the potential and limitations of AI. 
  3. Be true to the work and its impact. Use data and insights to educate. Leverage publications and medical meetings as opportunities. 
  4. Showcase the significant personal and societal impact of healthcare innovation on patients over the last century, with AI as the latest example.
  5. Proactively address concerns about data privacy and AI biases. Clearly communicate how your AI solutions adhere to regulations and best practices. Consider working with medical experts to create a campaign that speaks to the worries and anxieties of the public.

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors

Navigating healthcare's next frontier: AI

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

July 28, 2023

A recent Yale School of Management survey showed close to half of 200 top CEOs across sectors believe health is the field in which AI will make the most transformative contribution. 

  • Healthcare spending on AI software is expected to grow 40% to nearly $6.2 billion in 2023, compared with $4.4 billion in 2022. 
  • Rules-based predictive AI has been around for a while, powering myriads of applications, whether identifying hospital readmission risks for patients or predicting clinical outcomes in drug trials. 

Why it matters: Now, with breakthroughs in generative AI, disparate sources of unstructured data like clinical notes, diagnostic images and medical charts have turned into assets for the data-hungry technology. 

The bottom line: The untapped potential is huge for the field of healthcare, which currently generates 30% of the world’s data volume. 

What’s next: In this issue, we explore three major pain points in healthcare that are ripe for an AI solution, specifically for providers, hospitals and health insurance companies. 

  • Our next edition will focus on the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical devices industries.

1. Admin tasks detract from high-value work

The big picture: Clinician burnout and healthcare staff attrition are worldwide concerns, leading to lost productivity, increased costs and a decline in patient care quality.

Using AI to tackle paperwork isn’t glamorous, but can reduce a huge burden for providers. For years, doctors have used simpler admin tools like speech recognition software to help with documentation. AI can do far more – such as summarizing, organizing and tagging conversations between physicians and patients. 

Why it matters: Physicians are spending an estimated 4.5 hours a day completing electronic health records required for treatment and billing. 

  • In dollar terms, admin expenses accounted for up to $1 trillion in the U.S., or 25% of the total national health expenditures in 2019. 
  • Automating paperwork means providers can spend time connecting with patients.

What else? When the quality of patient care declines, hospital readmissions tend to rise, resulting in an even heavier burden on the healthcare system. 

  • Clinician burnout is not unique to the U.S., and it was a problem even before the pandemic. In a 2019 study, Germany estimated an average of €9 billion in lost productivity annually, while Switzerland averaged an annual loss of €5.8 billion to replace doctors who left the field due to stress and exhaustion.

Go deeper:

However, a fragmented landscape with multiple AI programs could perpetuate the industry-wide issue of interoperability.

2. Prior authorization inefficiencies lead to delays or coverage denials

The big picture: Prior authorization is the process through which a doctor files a request with a patient’s health insurer before treatments, tests or prescriptions. It has remained a largely manual process on both sides, with humans sorting through a patient’s health plan and medical history via emails, phone calls and faxes. 

Because prior authorization is based on data exchange, AI will be able to automate up to 75% of the manual work and reduce the approval window to days, if not hours, per McKinsey. That would present a massive improvement over the current average of 10 days. 

Why it matters: Data show that 93% of physicians said prior authorizations delay patient care, and 82% said the process is so complicated that it causes patients to abandon treatment altogether.

  • Automation is difficult as payers have no standardized method for receiving and approving requests. Prior authorization has the lowest electronic adoption rate (about 26%) among all admin tasks for payers. 
  • The manually-intensive nature exposes the process to errors. A 2022 report found that 13% of prior authorization denials by Medicare Advantage plans were for benefits that should have been covered.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently proposed a rule that would require certain payers to implement an automated process, meet shorter time frames and be more transparent about their decision-making.

Go deeper: 

  • Florida Blue partnered with Olive, a healthcare automation company, to issue approvals while a patient is still at the doctor’s office. Rather than deny requests that it cannot immediately approve, the tool instead routes them to clinicians for human review. Health Care Service Corp. has implemented a similar automated tool.
  • Startups like Cohere offer AI solutions that can be customized for individual health plans’ specific prior authorization needs. 

In June, however, the American Medical Association called for more oversight of how AI is used for prior authorizations to ensure it does not result in more coverage denials.

3. Physicians struggle to stay on top of latest medical knowledge

The big picture: A 2022 survey showed that 95% of physicians are interested in learning about new trials, treatments or procedures, but 68% said they feel overwhelmed by the amount of information they have to keep up with. 

Large language models, or LLMs, can help healthcare professionals stay up-to-date by quickly summarizing and analyzing new research findings, and suggesting relevant studies based on the provider’s specialty and patient population. 

Why it matters: “Medical knowledge is growing so rapidly that only 6% of what the average new physician is taught at medical school today will be relevant in 10 years,” according to a National Bureau of Economic Research report. “Technology such as AI could provide valuable clinical data to the clinician at the time of diagnosis.” 

That said, “adoption of AI for decision-making in medicine is outpacing efforts to oversee its use,” per STAT News. A research collective called Health AI Partnership – which includes leaders from New York Presbyterian, Mayo Clinic, and other major institutions – published a guide to help health systems overcome challenges, address biases and prioritize equity while implementing AI tools. 

Go deeper:

  • New York-based Northwell Health integrated Aidoc’s AI system into 17 of its hospitals, while also launching an AI-enhanced pregnancy chat app earlier this year to screen for common symptoms and give users personalized advice. New York City Health + Hospitals and NYU Langone Health are also proactively using AI for patient care.
  • Mount Sinai is incorporating AI for more timely diagnosis of eye disease and risk assessment of systemic health conditions. The hospital also has a chatbot that guides anxious patients who are trying to decide between making a regular doctor’s appointment, visiting a local urgent care or heading to an emergency room.

Yes, but: Generative AI’s tendency to hallucinate is a major red flag in the high-stakes realm of patient care. LLMs “should never replace humans in the diagnosis and treatment of patients,” said Dr. Karen DeSalvo, chief health officer at Google and a former Obama administration health official. 

4. Upcoming health events + conferences to monitor

  1. Healthcare Automation and Digitalization Congress
    September 25-26, 2023 // Zurich, Switzerland
  2. HLTH 2023
    October 8-11, 2023 // Las Vegas
  3. Reuters Total Health
    November 7-8, 2023 // Chicago
  4. FT Global Pharma and Biotech Summit
    November 7-9, 2023 // Digital & In-Person
  5. FT Health Technology Summit
    November 30, 2023 // Digital
  6. 2023 Forbes Healthcare Summit
    December 4-5, 2023 // New York City

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors

Catch up on the latest AI trends + topics

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

July 7, 2023

This edition features the latest developments around AI regulation and news from Amazon, Google, and SoftBank. Plus, we’ve compiled a brief roundup of podcasts and thought leaders to follow for timely AI insight.

1. Latest AI trends + hot topics

 

  • NYC hiring law takes effect. Starting July 5, New York City businesses that use AI in hiring must audit their processes for evidence of bias, and report out the results. This new law, believed to be the first of its kind, requires employers using machine learning in their hiring practices to engage third party auditors on an annual basis.

 

  • Novelty wearing off? ChatGPT saw traffic fall for the first time in June, down 9.7% from May, according to preliminary estimates from Similarweb. The decline was even greater just in the U.S., with a 10.3% month-on-month decline. Nevertheless, ChatGPT remains by far the most visited chatbot.

 

  • Amazon CEO: Don’t count us out of the AI race just yet. In a recent interview, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said that the company’s proprietary AI chips have an edge in price performance, as it goes up against category leader Nvidia. Jassy likened the buzz around generative AI chatbots as the “hype cycle” before the “substance cycle,” specifically pointing to AWS as one business that can capitalize on the AI buzz over the long term.

 

  • Google updated its privacy policy, explicitly saying the company reserves the right to scrape everything posted online to build its AI tools. This is an unusual clause for a privacy policy, as a business typically describes ways that it uses the information users post on the company’s own services. Here, the language implies that the entire public internet is fair game for Google’s AI projects.

 

  • SoftBank Group shifts to “offense mode” on AI,” CEO Masayoshi Son said at a shareholder meeting. His focus on AI preceded the launch of ChatGPT – the CEO has mentioned “AI” more than 500 times in quarterly and annual results presentations between 2017 and mid-2022.

    Now, SoftBank is set to develop its own generative AI platform, with a $37 million cash infusion from the Japanese government. Several companies backed by SoftBank’s Vision Fund are expected to become big winners as the AI wave expands, with one chip designer slated for a blockbuster IPO later this year.

 

  • European companies sound the alarm over AI law. Dozens of Europe’s largest companies, including Germany’s Siemens and France’s Airbus, have spoken out against the EU’s proposed AI regulation, saying the rules risk harming competitiveness, yet fail to deal with potential challenges.

    Meanwhile, Japan is reportedly leaning toward softer AI rules closer to the U.S. than to the EU, as it looks to the technology to boost economic growth and propel it to leadership status in advanced chips.

1. Where to turn for insightful AI perspective

For a range of input on the ever-evolving AI landscape, below are four podcast recommendations and four great Twitter follows.

Podcasts:

  • Lex Fridman Podcast
     With a massive following, this podcast features the preeminent AI researcher who has the technical heft to book the best minds in AI as guests. Each episode spans at least an hour, but includes well-labeled timestamps so you can jump to the topics that interest you.

 

  • Hard Fork
    A lighthearted weekly show put out by the New York Times, featuring two journalists exploring the latest in tech with abundant humor. Topics are not confined to AI, and the content isn’t as technical as many other AI podcasts. Each episode clocks in at about an hour.

 

  • Your Undivided Attention
    In this biweekly podcast from the Center for Humane Technology, co-founders Tristan Harris and Aza Raskin explore the power that technology has over our lives and discuss challenges and solutions with a wide-range of thought leaders. Episode durations vary.

 

  • Me, Myself and AI
    Why do only 10% of companies succeed with AI? This biweekly podcast by MIT Sloan Management Review and Boston Consulting Group attempts to answer that question, featuring leaders who’ve achieved big AI wins at their companies. Each episode runs under 30 minutes.

 

Thought leaders on Twitter:

  • Yann LeCun – Chief AI scientist at Facebook and professor at NYU. 
  • Kai-Fu Lee – CEO of Chinese tech VC firm Sinovation Ventures, former CEO of Google China and writer. 
  • Andrew Ng – Co-founder of Coursera, Stanford adjunct faculty and former head of Baidu AI Group and Google Brain. 
  • Fei-Fei Li – Leading AI scientist, Stanford professor and co-director of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI.

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors

Current Events Brief: Preparing for SCOTUS Decision on Affirmative Action

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Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

June 23, 2023

The Supreme Court is expected to rule soon on two affirmative action cases specific to race-based admissions programs in higher education. Though employer initiatives are subject to different legal parameters than academic institutions, there may be implications for civil rights laws that impact workplace diversity programs.

The big picture: The question in front of the justices is whether colleges and universities can consider race in their admissions decisions.

But while public and private academic institutions are the focus of these cases, a decision prohibiting race as criteria in admissions could encourage legal challenges to corporate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.

Why it matters: For strategic communicators advising executives, DEI leaders and employee resource groups, there are key questions to consider in anticipation of the SCOTUS rulings.

  • How does this impact our work?

  • What changes might be required for what we can say and do?

  • What do our internal and external stakeholders expect of our organization?

  • What should we be doing now?

In this newsletter, we address these questions and provide resources to help you prepare.

1. Legal Q&A: Navigating the Court’s ruling

On Thursday, we spoke with Richard A. Bierschbach, Dean and John W. Reed Professor of Law at Wayne State University Law School in Detroit.

Bierschbach, a former law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, gave us his take ahead of the Court’s decision. His insights are also informed by his experience in the New York offices of three global law firms and tenure as a lawyer in the U.S. Department of Justice.

What are the legal issues here – and what’s at stake for corporations?

  • The basic question in these cases is the legality of affirmative action in college admissions under federal law.

  • Specifically, can Harvard and the University of North Carolina (UNC) consider race as a factor in their admissions decisions under the equal protection and due process clauses of the U.S. Constitution, and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964?

  • The immediate legal effect of the Court’s decision will apply only to educational institutions.

  • But, depending on what the decision says, the implications could be much broader for all sorts of companies and organizations.

How is SCOTUS expected to rule?

  • Based on the oral arguments and where the Court is on these issues, most observers think the Court is going to find that what Harvard and UNC are doing is unlawful. A different outcome would be a big surprise.

  • The real question is, in what way are they going to find it unlawful? There’s a range of ways, and we really won’t know until we read the opinion.

  • For instance, the Court could prohibit the consideration of race outright. Or it could restrict its use even more than the law currently does without totally prohibiting it.

  • So, the effect on universities and on companies down the road is really going to depend on what the Court’s reasoning is and how broadly or narrowly the opinion is written.

  • That said, I think we can expect a ruling that puts affirmative action and DEI programs under a legal microscope.

How could an adverse ruling against Harvard and UNC put private employers in legal jeopardy?

  • While colleges and universities will be the only institutions bound by Court’s decision, its implications could reverberate well into the legal framework that governs private employers and other institutions.

  • The affirmative action and DEI programs of private companies are governed by a different legal framework under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and related state and federal anti-discrimination laws.

  • But like Title VI, which is at issue in these cases, those laws also prohibit discrimination on the basis of race. And courts often look to the one in interpreting the other.

  • So the thinking is if the Court does strike down Harvard’s and UNC’s programs, plaintiffs will use the decision to then bring similar challenges under the legal framework that does apply to private companies and other organizations.

How would this change what companies can say or do regarding their DEI commitments and initiatives?

  • Companies don’t want to overreact or abandon their values.

  • Diversity itself is not unconstitutional, and these decisions won’t change that. But institutions should consider positioning themselves in a more nuanced way.

  • Programs that lean heavily on race and other protected categories are going to raise red flags. Numerical quotas and specific consideration of race as a programmatic criterion are going to get attention.

  • Employers may want to emphasize things like life experience and the value of different perspectives. Anything that smacks of identity-based categories will be looked at very skeptically.

How can companies safely navigate this challenge to their DEI initiatives?

  • Organizations are going to want to be more creative in how they think about and implement DEI concepts.

  • Think about pathway programs like partnering with HBCUs or pipelines for first generation workers who are the first in their family to get a degree. Provide programs for people who come from certain socioeconomic backgrounds or geographic areas that have been historically underprivileged.

  • Think about qualifying criteria in those terms, rather than what we would call immutable characteristics.

  • Companies should also think beyond hiring and continue to focus on leadership development, retention, and the needs of their workforce, perhaps applying similar criteria to programs within the organization.

  • Companies should already be reviewing their DEI programs – taking a hard look at their substance, how they talk about them, how they think about and conceptualize them, how their managers talk about and implement them, and how they train their employees around all of those issues – to bring them into conformity with this new approach.

How soon could employers be impacted by the Court’s decision and where can they turn for help?

  • The legal impact will be immediate on educational institutions. And we can expect that plaintiffs targeting companies, assuming the Court invalidates race-based admissions, will move pretty quickly.

  • They’re likely framing up complaints right now, making use of the anticipated decision to structure similar challenges.

  • So employers could face litigation risk in fairly short order, depending on what their programs look like.

  • It’s going to take some time to see what lower courts do with those claims. It will take a while for those to work their way through the system. But it’s coming, and companies should already be meeting with their legal counsel and thinking about that sort of risk management.

  • There are other immediate strategic considerations as well, especially regarding the cultural effects of any changes and how companies demonstrate and communicate their values to employees, suppliers, consumers and investors.

  • Companies may want to look to states like Michigan, California and Washington – places that, under state law, already have tougher restrictions on public institutions regarding race-based admissions, hiring, and contracting – to get a sense of how they are coping and what approaches they have taken.

  • And I can’t overstate the importance of companies staying true to their culture. Remember that the legal issue before the Court here is one of race-based decision making. The ideas of diversity and sound business practices – hopefully those will never be unlawful, regardless of the makeup of the Court.

This interview is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice. Responses were edited for space.

2. Reading list

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors

How companies are (or are not) communicating their AI strategies

Insights

Global Gateway Advisors

By Global Gateway Advisors

June 20, 2023

Six months since the launch of ChatGPT, AI has quickly become one of the most talked about topics by many corporate executives. Corporate earnings calls showed a 77% year over year uptick in mentions of AI in Q4 2022, with the pace only intensifying since then. 

Several key messaging themes are emerging among top tech CEOs, investors and consulting firms.

  • Advocacy tied to business momentum: Difference in tone reflects the AI race hierarchy – with Microsoft and Nvidia showing full-steam-ahead enthusiasm, while Alphabet and Apple lean into the concerns and cautions with a more measured, thoughtful stance.
  • Engagement is widespread: With Apple as a notable exception, major tech companies are actively engaging with media and communicating to shareholders about their AI strategies. 
  • Technology described as revolutionary: Many statements are optimistic and forward-looking; keywords include “profound,” “invest substantially,” “promises,” “rebirth,” and “incredible,” “qualitative breakthroughs.”
  • Excitement tempered by cautious tone: Future-forward messages are often followed by caution and pragmatism, manifesting in phrases like “take our time,” “responsible AI,” and a “number of issues that need to be sorted.”

1. AI messaging balances opportunity and pragmatism

Here’s a look at how top tech companies and their CEOs have contributed to the AI dialogue. 

ALPHABET

Shows cautious optimism rather than exuberance, wades into regulatory discussions

  • Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai is front and center on AI media engagements, appearing in primetime interviews and meeting with the UK prime minister to talk about regulation.  
  • While Pichai is direct about AI’s potential… “I’ve always thought of AI as the most profound technology humanity is working on. More profound than fire or electricity or anything that we’ve done in the past,” Pichai said on CBS News’ “60 Minutes” this month.
  • …He is clear that Alphabet is not rushing AI: “We’ve been cautious. There are areas where we’ve chosen not to be the first to put a product out. We’ve set up good structures around responsible AI. You will continue to see us take our time,” Pichai told Bloomberg.
  • Alphabet recently challenged OpenAI’s calls to form a central AI governing body, by voicing its preference for a “multi-layered, multi-stakeholder approach to AI governance.” The company cited the overarching impact AI will have on many regulated industries, such as finance and healthcare. 

AMAZON

Vows to take its deep machine learning experience to new heights

  • Amazon CEO Andy Jassy leans on the online retailer’s longstanding history of using AI to claim the company as a leader in this next wave of technology, noting that generative AI “promises to significantly accelerate machine learning adoption.”
  • Jassy said the company is “investing heavily” and “will continue to invest substantially” in generative AI, per a recent letter to shareholders. He noted Amazon has been working on its own large language models (LLMs) for “a while now,” and said he believes it will “transform and improve virtually every customer experience.” 

APPLE

Takes the “show, don’t tell” approach + lets its products do the messaging

  • Apple, as a product company,  takes the practical approach on AI and lets its product features speak for themselves. Apple doesn’t often use the term “AI” – instead referring to “machine learning,” or simply talking about the features the technology enables.
  • CEO Tim Cook isn’t vocal about AI, so when he said AI is “huge,” but that there are “a number of issues that need to be sorted,” it was enough to make headlines. 

IBM

Talks about job displacements by AI + the need for upskilling

  • IBM CEO Arvind Krishna announced a hiring freeze in the back office in May, saying “I could easily see 30% of that getting replaced by AI and automation over a five-year period.”
  • Recently, he tried to soothe nerves by pointing to declining working-age populations.

Having employees do routine tasks that A.I. could do is “not an option,” he said. “We are going to need technology to do some of the mundane work so that people can do higher-value work.” 

META

Subtly pivots away from Metaverse, envisions AI that can facilitate human interactions

  • Meta acknowledges playing catch up on AI after a heavy focus on the metaverse. 
  • CEO Mark Zuckerberg mentioned AI 27 times in Meta’s Q1 earnings call in April. The company plans to commercialize its proprietary generative AI by December. Zuckerberg said in a company meeting that the “incredible breakthroughs” on generative AI will enable Meta to “build it into every single one of our projects.”
  • In a recent podcast interview, Zuckerberg also said the AI assistants he plans to launch will take on roles including “a mentor, a life coach, a cheerleader that can help pick you up through all of life’s challenges,” adding that AI can help people “express themselves better to people in situations where they would otherwise have a hard time doing that.” 

MICROSOFT 

Champions how AI will positively impact society, with a nod to risks

  • Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks extensively on the positive societal changes that AI will bring about, from democratizing access to new skills to turbocharging productivity growth. While acknowledging risks such as biases, Nadella contends that the benefits of AI – Microsoft’s AI, at least – will outweigh the potential drawbacks. 
  • In a recent WIRED story, Nadella said: “I am haunted by the fact that the industrial revolution didn’t touch the parts of the world where I grew up until much later … So I’m not at all worried about AGI showing up, or showing up fast. Great, right? That means 8 billion people have abundance. That’s a fantastic world to live in.”
  • On risks… “It’s an abdication of our own responsibility to say this is going to just go out of control. We can deal with powerful technology,” Nadella said.
  • On competition… “At the end of the day, [Google is] the 800-pound gorilla in [search],” Nadella said in an interview. “I hope that, with our innovation, they will definitely want to come out and show that they can dance. And I want people to know that we made them dance.”

NVIDIA

Touts AI as a social equalizer that will usher in the “rebirth of the computer industry” 

  • Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang boldly claims that AI has closed the “digital divide” because “everyone can be a programmer” – all they need to do is speak to the computer. 
  • “A.I. has reinvented computing from the ground up,” Huang said during a recent commencement speech in his birthplace of Taiwan. “In every way, this is a rebirth of the computer industry.” 
  • Nvidia, as a chip maker, is one degree removed from the AI tools that it powers. Thus, the company stays above the fray when it comes to regulation. Huang has made no notable mentions of AI’s risks. 

SALESFORCE 

Stresses the need for “trust layer,” carves out niche as custodian of safe AI deployment

  • Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has described the new age of generative AI as more revolutionary than any technology innovation in this lifetime, or any lifetime, but he also openly discusses the risks and importance of creating tools that keeps customers safe.
  • The company isn’t looking to win on building the models themselves; instead, Salesforce’s role is as custodian and guide to make AI useful and safe. To that end, they launched an enterprise product called AI Cloud that can be incorporated into business operations.
  • “Trusted and responsible AI” is the most important goal for Salesforce, Benioff said. Regarding risk considerations, he noted “we understand the burden there must be on us as we’re trying to take this forward.”

2. How major investors have weighed in on AI

  • Bill Ackman, founder of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital, predicted that Alphabet would be a “secular winner” in AI and pumped $1 billion into its shares. 
  • Stanley Druckenmiller snapped up $430 million of Microsoft and Nvidia stocks, saying that “unlike crypto, I think AI is real.”
  • Altimeter Capital’s Brad Gerstner says “AI tech tools will be bigger than the Internet.” He describes himself as a pragmatic optimist. “Yes we need to prepare more for white collar job displacement,” he wrote on Twitter, adding that he is also optimistic and a believer “that the net benefits to humanity far outweigh the potential harm. AI will unleash a massive wave of human productivity.”
  • Cathie Wood, the founder of Ark Invest and best known for investing in disruptive innovation, unloaded her Nvidia positions after the stock’s astronomical ascent, citing growing competition. She instead scooped up Meta shares, saying the company is “able to deliver better” using less computing power and more data, adding that she likes “the fact that Mark Zuckerberg is now prioritizing artificial intelligence as opposed to the metaverse.”
  • Roundhill Investments launched the first pure play ETF in generative AI. Chief investment officer Tim Maloney said: “We haven’t seen anything really like it in recent history, or history generally.” 
  • Last fall, VC giant Sequoia Capital took a novel approach and posted a blog on their website to invite AI founders to email their pitches directly. Hundreds of responses ensued, which they fielded through weekly Zoom calls. “Generative AI is well on the way to becoming not just faster and cheaper, but better in some cases than what humans create by hand,” Sequoia wrote.
  • At this year’s annual Berkshire Hathaway meeting, Warren Buffett expressed his doubts about AI. “There won’t be anything in AI that replaces Ajit [Jain, Berkshire vice chairman of insurance],” Buffett said. “And, when something can do all kinds of things, I get a little bit worried,” he added. “Because I know we won’t be able to uninvent it.”

3. Other AI trends + hot topics

  • Generative AI may be able to fully automate half of all work activity in just 22 years, including decision-making, management and interfacing with stakeholders, according to a new McKinsey report. Per McKinsey’s research, generative AI could add “$2.6 trillion to $4.4  trillion annually” to the global economy, close to the size and productivity of the UK. 
  • The E.U. took a major step toward passing what would be the first laws to regulate AI, which would severely curtail uses of facial recognition software and require AI system makers to disclose more about the data used to create their programs.
  • Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) revealed a new AI chip to challenge Nvidia’s dominance, but did not share details on who plans to buy it or how it will bolster company sales. Amazon reportedly may be a potential customer.
  • Singer Paul McCartney said AI helped create one last Beatles song using a demo with John Lennon’s voice, amid ethical questions around authorship and ownership when it comes to creating music with voices of established artists.

Share your feedback with us at insights@gga.nyc.

by Global Gateway Advisors