If you closely follow the AI world, you probably already know what the Gemini AI demo video controversy is about. Apparently, a portion of the demo video seemed misleading to many viewers. The details in the article “Google faces controversy over edited Gemini AI demo video”. A key point to note is that the documentation shared with the video clearly highlighted how the video was created.

The world of Generative AI has become brutal. We had fun watching the weird Open AI Game of Thrones a few weeks ago. No matter how amusing or weird you may have found, there were some lessons for many. Microsoft learned that hiring Sam Altman alone will deliver zilch, so you build relationships with the partner companies, not someone there. Open AI employees, who apparently wanted Sam out for his behavior, realized that when you bank too much on making someone face your technology, your technology alone becomes secondary to a world that does not grasp the technical reality of Generative AI properly.

The gist is that there is a Generative AI race, and no major technology company wants to lose. The race is real. What amuses me is that leading technology companies are more focused on their perceived position in the AI race, instead of taking time to understand and explore the few different directions they can take their products from where they are. What the Gemini AI demo video was is the result of that pressure. But I still don’t think that it was distorting anything. We have become so lazy that we do not want to read documentation and get our hands dirty by deep diving into technology, but we still want to be labeled as an expert in technology.

Someone highlighted that they shot themselves in the foot by doing what they did with the video. To be fair, MS did so a few weeks ago, and in my opinion, most companies in the Generative AI race are doing the same. The obsession is so focused on “mine is bigger” that no one is taking a step back to pause and evaluate how to go from here. So, no, Google has not shot themselves in the foot. Nothing has changed significantly in the world of Generative AI technology before and after that video.

If you grew up in India as a teenager, you understand peer pressure and how “concerned” relatives and even parents pressure kids, comparing them to other kids. Something similar is happening in the Generative AI world. Unfortunately, some of that must be done since public companies must also please shareholders and stakeholders. But it looks like “mine is bigger” is becoming the goal.

It does not matter if you use a technology called Generative AI or Degenerative AI. How will that technology eventually help change the products and services you offer to your user base. MS has been throwing Generative AI at everything but everything that already exists. With Gemini AI, Google has the opportunity to not get into that trap. They can take some time to understand and evaluate their paths better. Some good opportunities exist. All they have to do is to disregard the “mine is bigger” race and focus on the mid-term. The same approach applies to all leading players in the race, whether it is MS, Meta, or AWS. Or anyone in the Generative AI race.

Because trying to catch up or lead a race will be the real “shooting oneself in the foot.” Because a few years from now, the race would have cooled down. When the dust settles, shareholders and stakeholders will want to see the true impact. It is not about what technology can do in a demo (unless you pitch a solution for a sale). It is about what it eventually ended up doing. The secret sauce, hence, is to balance the current state of innovation marketing with a mid-term execution strategy. More to come on that in a separate article.