THE AGENDA
BY ROGER GROS , PUBLISHER
Artificial Stupidity
Of course we all by now have heard of artificial intelligence ( AI ) and all the amazing things that it ’ s going to do for our civilization , not to mention the gaming industry .
“ Machine learning ” and “ neural network algorithms ” are the terms that they use to explain how AI works .
They tell us that AI will not make any human mistakes if programmed properly . In Las Vegas , the Switch facility is a series of super-computers that span several of the very long Vegas blocks , which stores and analyzes billions of data points in seconds . AI is touted as an almost perfect model that can ’ t make mistakes , saving time and resources that often are hampered by human error . It can help executives make quick decisions in difficult situations because it can examine all the ramifications of any outcome that could result from each decision . AI draws all its information from the “ big data ” pool so the chances it will be wrong are minimized . AI has applications in almost all areas of life — medical , manufacturing , service , transportation , entertainment and much more .
AI will be able to track down anyone in the world for any reason at all by using algorithms that reveal all . For gaming , AI will identify your potential best customer and tell you how to approach that person for the best results . AI will tell you how to make the most profit on any customer while keeping them happy .
AI can direct robots to clean hotel rooms , mix drinks and deliver them to their destination , and understand the weaknesses of any system . AI can field complaints and respond in real time , eliminating the need to use humans to solve customer service problems . And AI is available 24 hours a day , and is sharp as a tack every second of that time . So why am I so worried ? Well , as mentioned , AI can eliminate many of the jobs that today are done by humans in the casino industry . We already see mechanical dealers and the robot mixologists . It ’ s a short leap to robot housekeepers , valet parking attendants and even front desk clerks . But we all are human , and if you take that element out of our service industry , where does that leave us ? The most powerful tool casinos have is building relationships , and that can ’ t be done if one side is run by AI . Gaming is a person-to-person business and AI only makes it impersonal .
Like your privacy ? Well , that may be compromised as AI learns everything about you .
Remember when you talked to your wife about taking a trip to Las Vegas and suddenly travel deals to Vegas started popping up on your computer or smart phone ? Yes , that is AI , and it ’ s one of the reasons Alexa or Siri don ’ t live in my house or my office .
And AI doesn ’ t know if it ’ s acting on bad data until someone tells it that it ’ s bad . So humans don ’ t really know if the decisions that are suggested by AI are rational or not . The dangers of relying on AI for major decisions is clear .
We ’ ve seen the chaos created with the hackers . The MGM and Caesars hacks of last year were just the latest , and most highly publicized , cyberattacks on casinos . Almost every casino has had to fend off these attacks . AI just gives hackers another tool to target casinos , online or off . If you ’ ve automated any of your systems so that humans don ’ t have a role in their implementation , you leave yourself wide open to hackers .
I remember hearing the brilliant Andrew Cardno tell an audience at an Indian gaming conference that if you ’ ve opened any of your systems to the cloud or any outside source , you are going to be hacked . Obviously it ’ s not possible to run a business without connecting to some outside systems , so how do you deal with it ?
One of the risks of AI , of course , is there is a very real potential that AI will become smarter than humans — that it will somehow turn on humanity . Remember Hal the computer in Stanley Kubrick ’ s 2001 : A Space Odyssey ? Imagine trying to access the gaming history of one of your best players and Hal tells you to back off , that he knows better . While this is something of a reach , this could happen .
So let ’ s not allow AI to rule our world in gaming . Yes , there are some applications that may be advantageous , but let ’ s maintain the human touch with our shareholders , our employees and our customers .
Vol . 23 • No . 3 • MARCH 2024
Roger Gros , Publisher | rgros @ ggbmagazine . com twitter : @ GlobalGamingBiz
Frank Legato , Editor | flegato @ ggbmagazine . com twitter : @ FranklySpeakn
Jess Marquez , Managing Editor jmarquez @ ggbmagazine . com
John Reger , Associate Editor jreger @ ggbmagazine . com
Monica Cooley , Art Director mcooley @ ggbmagazine . com
Terri Brady , Sales & Marketing Director tbrady @ ggbmagazine . com
Becky Kingman-Gros , Associate Publisher & COO bkingros @ ggbmagazine . com
Lisa Johnson , Communications Advisor lisa @ lisajohnsoncommunications . com twitter : @ LisaJohnsonPR
Columnists Julia Carcamo | Frank Fantini | Dave Forman
Contributing Editors Dave Bontempo twitter : @ bontempomedia Kevin Dennis | Andrew Klebanow Arte Nathan | Michael Soll _______________
EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD Rino Armeni , President , Armeni Enterprises
• Mark A . Birtha , Senior Vice President & General Manager , Hard Rock International
• Julie Brinkerhoff-Jacobs , President , Lifescapes International
• Nicholas Casiello Jr ., Shareholder , Fox Rothschild
• Jeffrey Compton , Publisher , CDC E-Reports twitter : @ CDCNewswire
• Dean Macomber , President , Macomber International , Inc .
• Stephen Martino , Vice President & Chief Compliance Officer , MGM Resorts International , twitter : @ stephenmartino
• Jim Rafferty , President , Rafferty & Associates
• Rob Russell , Senior Gaming Analyst , Regulatory Management Counselors PC
• Michael Soll , President , The Innovation Group
• Katherine Spilde , Executive Director , Sycuan Gaming Institute , San Diego State University , twitter : @ kspilde
• Ernie Stevens , Jr ., Chairman , National Indian Gaming Association twitter : @ NIGA1985
• Roy Student , President , Applied Management Strategies
• David D . Waddell , Partner Regulatory Management Counselors PC
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The views and opinions expressed by the writers and columnists of GLOBAL GAMING BUSINESS are not necessarily the views of the publisher or editor .
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4 Global Gaming Business MARCH 2024