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The buzz in Silicon Valley around AI agents has many asking: Whats real and whats hype? Box’s cofounder and CEO, Aaron Levie, helps decipher between fact and fiction, breaking down the fast-paced evolution of agents and their impact on the future of enterprise AI. Plus, Levie unpacks how AI is really being adopted in the workplace and what it takes to legitimately build an AI-first organization. This is an abridged transcript of an interview from Rapid Response, hosted by the former editor-in-chief of Fast Company Bob Safian. From the team behind the Masters of Scale podcast, Rapid Response features candid conversations with todays top business leaders navigating real-time challenges. Subscribe to Rapid Response wherever you get your podcasts to ensure you never miss an episode. I talked with Marc Benioff at Salesforce several months ago about his embrace of AI agents, but the use of his agents hasn’t quite taken off the way he hoped. I know you launched Box AI Studio to help organizations build their own custom AI agents. I’m curious how that’s going. So far, it’s either at or exceeding our expectations on all the use cases that customers are coming up with. So we’re pretty blown away about what we’re starting to see. We’re still very early days to be clear, but the rate of adoption is going fairly exponential, and the imagination that customers now have on this is blowing us away. I’ve rarely been in a customer conversation, either one-on-one or at a dinner, where I’m not hearing about a new idea that the customer has for Box AI that we did not already have on a whiteboard. And what’s excitingand this is counterintuitive, I think, to a lot of folks outside of AIyou initially sort of see AI in sci-fi and sometimes in news headlines, The New York Times or whatever, as like, “Okay, it’s going after jobs. It’s going to replace these types of work.” From my anecdotes, I’ve had at least 100 interactions with customers in the first quarter of this year, the vast majority, 80%, I’m guessing, the bulk of the time of AI use case kind of conversation was spent on things that the company didn’t do before AI. So it wasn’t, “Hey, I want to take this type of work, and I want AI to go replace it.” There’s a type of work that we never get around to in our company. I want AI to go and do that, because finally, it’s affordable for me to deploy AI agents at the kind of work that we could not fund before. It’s opening up people’s imagination to, “Hey, I’m like sitting on 50,000 customer contracts. What if I could have an AI agent go around all those customer contracts, and figure out which customers have the highest propensity to buy this next product from me?” And this is not something that they would have people ever do. So it’s not replacing anybody’s job. They never said, “Oh, let’s have 50 people go read all the contracts again.” It just never happened. But now, if it only costs them $5,000 for an AI agent to go do that, they would do that all day long. And then guess what? When they get those insights, they’re probably going to now have more work for the humans in their business to go and do as a result of this, that hopefully, if it’s effective, drives more growth in their businesswhich then causes even more productivity, and then ultimately hiring and growth. And so it’s not kind of everybody’s first instinct, but most of the use cases that we’re hearing about are things where, “Because it is now affordable to deploy AI at a problem, I’m actually expanding the set of things my company can go do, and then the work that we can now execute on.” And that’s not only very, I think, exciting, but I think it’s going to be the default case for most AI adoption in the enterprise. In some of the conversations that I have, it feels almost like some of the businesses and leaders, they don’t really know what they’re looking for from AI. And hearing you, it sounds a little bit like you have to think about your mindset on it a little differently to open up and find those things that are most valuable to you. Yes. Yeah, every business is going to be different because some of the upside is a virtue of your business model. What are the core parts of your business model that, as a result of access to information, can change or be modified or improved? If I am a law firm, I could either reduce my cost, because now AI is going to do more of the, let’s say, paralegal work, or I could expand my service offerings, because now, all of a sudden, my team can venture into more domains because they can take their expertise and use AI to augment that. The default assumption is, “Oh, no, it’s going to go after the hours of a law firm.” But once this technology hits an individual business, they can actually decide to expand their customer base. They can go after, previously, customers that would’ve been unprofitable for them to serve. So these industries are not as static and zero-sum. The software industry . . . on one hand, everybody says, “Okay, if AI can do coding, then will we hire fewer engineers?” And in general, my argument is that we’ll probably hire as manyif not moreengineers if AI can get really good at coding, because what will happen is the productivity rate of our engineer goes up, which means that we can then ascribe a higher degree of value per engineer in the company. So your ROI is even better on each of those positions? Exactly. And take something like sales. If we can make a sales rep able to sell 5% more, because we give them better data, and they can prepare for a customer meeting that much better, or they can understand exactly the best pitch because they have access to all of Box’s data and they can ask it questions, I’m not going to just bank that as 5% more profit. Because what will happen is we’re going to internally, in some planning session, we’re going to get greedy, and we’re going to say, “Wait a second, that 5% gain that we just got in sales productivity, what if we reinvested that back into the sales team to grow even faster and get that much more market share?” And so you have an entire economy of companies making those individual decisions of, “Do you bank the profit, or do you use it to go and accelerate growth?” And what we tend to know from history is that the companies that get too greedy on the profit side, you just end up leaving yourself vulnerable to being outflanked by competitors. So capitalism has a prety convenient way of almost driving the sort of productivity gains of these types of innovations to get reinvested back into the business. You’ve been talking about running Box in an AI-first way, and encouraging other leaders to do it. Are you like Shopify and Duolingo, who’ve announced that staffers have to justify anything that’s not AI-produced? What does AI-first mean? Yeah. So for us, AI-first means that we want to use AI as a means of driving an acceleration of the customer outcome, an acceleration of decision-making, an acceleration of building new features. So just think about it as mostly a metric of speed. On one hand, you could think about AI as going after like a massive work, and you could say AI is going to remove some part of that massive work and do it instantly, so the massive work goes down, or think about work as a timeline, and not a mass. All we’re doing is trying to get through each step so that way, we can get to the next step and so on. And everything’s faster. And everything’s faster. So I want to have us use AI to move faster down the timeline, not just purely to reduce the total mass of work that we’re doing. There’s probably one pronounced difference versus, let’s say, the Duolingo memo. There’s some emerging idea, which is sort of you have to prove that AI can’t do this thing for you to get then head count, and our general instinct is actually the opposite. If you can prove that you can use AI, then that’s actually when you will get head count, because what we want is we want the dollars of the business to go back into the areas that are the increasing areas of productivity gain, because those areas will then be higher ROI for us over time.
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E-Commerce
People often think of disasters as great equalizers. After all, a tornado, wildfire, or hurricane doesnt discriminate against those in its path. But the consequences for those affected are not one-size-fits-all. Thats evident in recent storms, and in the U.S. Census Bureaus national household surveys showing who is displaced by disasters. Overall, the Census Bureau estimates that more than 4.3 million Americans had to leave their homes because of disasters in 2024, whether for a short period or much longer. It was the fourth-costliest year on record for disasters. However, a closer look at demographics in the survey reveals much more about disaster risk in America and who is vulnerable. It suggests, as researchers have also found, that people with the fewest resources, as well as those who have disabilities or have been marginalized, were more likely to be displaced from their homes by disasters than other people. Decades of disaster research, including from our team at the University of Delawares Disaster Research Center, make at least two things crystal clear: First, peoples social circumstancessuch as the resources available to them, how much they can rely on others for help, and challenges they face in their daily lifecan lead them to experience disasters differently compared to others affected by the same event. And second, disasters exacerbate existing vulnerabilities. This research also shows how disaster recovery is a social process. Recovery is not a thing, but rather it is linked to how we talk about recovery, make decisions about recovery, and prioritize some activities over others. Lessons from past disasters Sixty years ago, the recovery period after the destructive 1964 Alaskan earthquake was driven by a range of economic and political interests, not simply technical factors or on need. That kind of influence continues in disaster recovery today. Even disaster buyout programs can be based on economic considerations that burden under-resourced communities. This recovery process is made even more difficult because policymakers often underappreciate the immense difficulties residents face during recovery. Following Hurricane Katrina, sociologist Alexis Merdjanoff found that property ownership status affected psychological distress and displacement, with displaced renters showing higher levels of emotional distress than homeowners. Lack of autonomy in decisions about how to repair or rebuild can play a role, further highlighting disparate experiences during disaster recovery. What the census shows about vulnerability U.S. Census data for 2023 and 2024 consistently showed that socially vulnerable groups reported being displaced from their homes at higher rates than other groups. People with less high school education had a higher rate of displacement than those with more education. So did those with low household incomes or who were struggling with employment, compared to other groups. While the Census Bureau describes the data as experimental and notes that some sample sizes are small, the differences stand out and are consistent with what researchers have found. For example, research has long pointed to how communities composed predominantly of Black, Hispanic, Native American, and Pacific Islander residents have disproportionately worse recovery trajectories after a disaster, often linked to aspects such as housing tenure and land-use policies. Though reporting individual experiences, the Census Bureaus findings are consistent with this research, noting a higher rate of displacement for these groups. Low-income and marginalized communities are often in areas at higher risk of flooding from storms or may lack investment in storm protection measures. The morass of bureaucracy and conflicting information can also be a barrier to a swift recovery. After Hurricane Sandy, people in New Jersey complained about complex paperwork and what felt to them like ever-changing rules. They bemoaned their housing recovery as, in researchers words, a muddled, inconsistent experience that lacked discernible rationale. Residents who dont know how to find information about disaster recovery assistance or cant take time away from work to accumulate the necessary documents and meet with agency representatives can have a harder time getting quick help from federal and state agencies. Disabilities also affect displacement. Of those people who were displaced for some length of time in 2023 and 2024, those with significant difficulty hearing, seeing, or walking reported being displaced at higher rates than those without disabilities. Prolonged loss of electricity or water due to an ice storm, wildfire, or grid overload during a heat emergency can force those with medical conditions to leave even if their neighbors are able to stay. That can also create challenges for their recovery. Displacement can leave vulnerable disaster survivors isolated from their usual support systems and healthcare providers. It can also isolate those with limited mobility from disaster assistance. Helping communities build resilience Crucial research efforts are underway to better help people who may be struggling the most after disasters. For example,our center was part of an interdisciplinary team that developed a framework to predict community resilience after disasters and help identify investments that could be made to bolster resilience. It outlines ways to identify gaps in community functioning, like healthcare and transportation, before disaster strikes. And it helps determine recovery strategies that would have the most impact. Shifts in weather and climate and a mobile population mean that peoples exposure to hazards are constantly shifting and often increasing. The Coastal Hazard, Equity, Economic Prosperity, and Resilience Hub, which our center is also part of, is developing tools to help communities best ensure resilience and strong economic conditions for all residents without shortchanging the need to prioritize equity and well-being. We believe that when communities experience disasters, they should not have to choose among thriving economically, ensuring all residents can recover, and reducing risk of future threats. There must be a way to account for all three. Understanding that disasters affect people in different ways is only a first step toward ensuring that the most vulnerable residents receive the support they need. Involving community members from disproportionately vulnerable groups to identify challenges is another. But those, alone, are not enough. If we as a society care about those who contribute to our communities, we must find the political and organizational will to act to reduce the challenges reflected in the census and disaster research. This article, originally published March 4, 2024, has been updated with latest severe storms and 2024 census data. Tricia Wachtendorf is a professor of sociology and director of the Disaster Research Center at the University of Delaware. James Kendra is the director of the Disaster Research Center and a professor of public policy & administration at the University of Delaware. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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E-Commerce
If youve ever been passed over for a promotion, you may have questioned the quality of your work. The other candidate probably had better experience, right? But what if the answer is that you simply werent top of mind. Instead of focusing exclusively on building a résumé, how much time do you focus on how youre perceived? A lot of people think that heads-down good work will speak for itself, says Lorraine K. Lee, author of Unforgettable Presence: Get Seen, Gain Influence, and Catapult Your Career. Then there are people who are thoughtful about how they’re seen, but they’re not being seen by the right people in the right places. Both can be career killers. Lee says she struggled with this earlier in her career. I worked on really high-profile projects, she says. I was well liked by my peers. As hard as I pushed, I could not figure out how to get promoted and how to get seen as a leader. What was missing was presence, Lee says. A lot of things compete for our attention. In order to stand out, we have to be unforgettable. We have to be really intentional with our presence. Lee started paying attention to how and where she was seen. She became more thoughtful about how she led meetings, communicated on Slack and Teams, and showed up in a room or on video. All these different factors are what make you unforgettable, she says. It’s not just about having certain charisma or gravitas; its how you can optimize each of those things. An Unforgettable Brand Being memorable starts with your personal brand. When people think ‘personal brand, they often think, That makes me feel slimy or I’m not a company, says Lee, who is an instructor for Stanford Continuing Studies and LinkedIn Learning. We already have a brand, and our brand is essentially our reputation. A brand is made up of four key factors, which Lee calls your EPIC frameworkexperiences, personality, identity, and community. First, consider personal and professional life experiences that make you who you are today. This includes any life events that have influenced you and that make your story memorable and unique. Your personality also factors into your brand. For example, Lee says her brand includes the fact that shes introverted. Some might be more serious, some more playful, she explains. Different aspects of our personality make us ‘us.’ Next is your identity, which consists of your cultural background and the values that you live by when you work, Lee says. For example, I am someone who really values relationships. I’m also someone who wants to be known for following through on what I say I’m going to do,” she adds. “My Asian American cultural background is also a part of my identity. Finally, the fourth piece is your community. A lot of people forget about or don’t think about community, Lee says. You can think you have the best brand in the world, but if others are not seeing you as a leader or not seeing you as ready to get that promotion, there’s a disconnect. Mentors and sponsors are an important part of your community. Mentors will coach you and share their own experiences, while sponsors advocate for you. Sponsors say your name when you’re not in the room, explains Lee. They open doors for you. Finding a sponsor who can help lift you up and carry you along with them as they ascend in a company is really critical. A lot of us get over-mentored and under-sponsored. An Unforgettable Introduction Once youre intentional about your brand, showcase it by having a unique and powerful introduction, or UPI. Lee noticed that people often introduce themselves at meetings or on calls by saying their name, job title, and company. Introductions are one of the most important situations in which we can create a strong impression and presence, but so many people let this opportunity pass them by, Lee says. You want your introduction to be a launching point for someone to learn more about you or know how they can turn to you in the future. For example, when Lee worked at Prezi, she would introduce herself by saying, Hi, I’m Lorraine. I lead the editorial team at Prezi. A unique and powerful introduction expands that information, giving the other person a more holistic understanding of the value you provide. It can include your target audience, success metrics and goals, a fun fact, or a high-level view of what you do day-to-day. Depending on the person shes meeting and the context of the interaction, Lee might introduce herself by saying, I’m Lorraine. I lead the editorial team at Prezi. What that means is that I collaborate with business leaders and keynote speakers to create educational content for hundreds of thousands of business professionals. Even that little tweak with a little bit more information gives the person I’m speaking to a better understanding of what it is I do, Lee says. I come across as more authoritative and confident as well. Being intentional about our introductions and including a little bit more information than what we are normally accustomed to goes a long way. Not paying attention to presence can stall a career, Lee adds. You stay stuck with where you are. If someone’s not looking to advance, it may be fine at that point in their career. But for the people who do want to reach that next level, it’s really hard if you arent intentional about your presence.
Category:
E-Commerce
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