Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer: AI will change the world tremendously

>> AS FAR AS L.A. TEAMS, I LIKE YOURS. >> I WANT TO TALK ABOUT L.A. TEAMS, BUT BEFORE WE DO THAT, I WANT TO TALK ABOUT JOBS AND A.I., AND I WANT YOU TO PUT YOUR A.I. HAT ON A LITTLE BIT, GIVEN YOUR STAKE IN MICROSOFT AND THE LIKE. AND ALSO, MAYBE, YOU COULD EVEN LOOK THROUGH SOME OF THE USA FACTS IN TERMS OF WHERE JOBS ARE OR AREN'T OR WHERE THEY'RE HEADED IN THIS COUNTRY, BUT IS A.I., IN YOUR MIND, RIGHT NOW, OVERHYPED, UNDERHYPED? IS THIS GOING TO CHANGE THE WORLD? IS IT NOT GOING TO CHANGE THE WORLD? WHAT DO YOU THINK? >> I THINK IT WILL CHANGE THE WORLD TREMENDOUSLY IN TERMS OF PEOPLE'S PRODUCTIVITY AND THERE WILL BE A REMAPPING OF JOBS, I THINK, AND WAGE STRUCTURE FROM SOME INDUSTRIES TO OTHERS. YET, AT THE SAME TIME, WE LOOK AT WHAT WE'RE DOING WITH USA FACTS TO COLLECT GOVERNMENT DATA, PUT IT TOGETHER AND PUBLISH IT. WE'VE SEEN AN ENORMOUS INCREASE AND EXPECT EVEN MORE ENORMOUS INCREASES IN OUR PRODUCTIVITY, WHICH IS PHENOMENAL. NOW, AT SOME POINT, WILL THAT REALLY, THEN, START DRIVING SHIFTS IN WHERE JOBS EXIST AND ARE ALLOCATED AND WHAT GETS PAID WELL? I THINK SO. I MEAN, IT MAY BE SURPRISING, IN THE SENSE THAT THERE MAY BE AN INCREASED VALUE OF THINGS THAT PEOPLE DO WITH THEIR HANDS PHYSICALLY, LIKE BUILDING A BUILDING. WE'RE BUILDING A NEW ARENA. I THINK THOSE JOBS ARE MORE LIKELY TO STAY AROUND FOR QUITE A WHILE THAN SOME SHIFTS IN JOBS -- >> WHO IS THE WINNER OF THIS? WHO'S GOING TO EXTRACT THE PROFIT? OBVIOUSLY, YOU HAVE A MASSIVE STAKE IN MICROSOFT. WE'VE BEEN TALKING ALL MORNING ABOUT WHAT, YOU KNOW, APPLE JUST ANNOUNCED YESTERDAY, OBVIOUSLY, USING OPENAI, WHICH HAS A PARTNERSHIP WITH MICROSOFT, AND WHETHER THIS IS A, YOU KNOW, GAME-CHANGING PRODUCT, WHETHER IT IS -- WHETHER ALL THESE LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS EFFECTIVELY BECOME COMMODITIZED BECAUSE EVERYONE'S GOING TO SORT OF PRODUCTIZE SOME ELEMENT OF THIS? >> YEAH, I THINK THE PIVOT POINT WILL COME, MUCH AS IT HAS IN PAST COMPUTER WAVES. WHO USES THE TECHNOLOGY BEST IN THEIR APPLICATIONS, AND WHO DRIVES THE TECHNOLOGY BEST INTO ITS DEEP INFRASTRUCTURE? IN THE CLOUD. AND I HAPPEN TO THINK MICROSOFT IS VERY WELL POSITIONED, BUT THERE ARE OTHER COMPANIES. >> HAVE YOU FIGURED OUT A WAY THESE MODELS ARE GOING TO GET MONETIZED? WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOW APPLE IS DOING THIS NEW PARTNERSHIP WITH OPENAI. HOW CAN THAT REALLY BE MONETIZED? WE UNDERSTOOD WHEN GOOGLE WAS PAYING APPLE A FORTUNE, THAT MADE SENSE BECAUSE IT WAS ADVERTISING REVENUE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF IT. IT'S MUCH MORE COMPLICATED -- I MEAN, OPENAI HAS NOT FIGURED OUT A "BUSINESS MODEL" YET, AND I DON'T KNOW WHO'S GOING TO BE PAYING FOR EVERY TIME THAT THERE'S A QUERY FROM AN APPLE USER ON TO AN OPENAI SERVER, WHICH MAY VERY WELL BE IN AZURE CLOUD. >> YEAH, I'M NOT SURE HOW THIS BUSINESS MODEL UNFOLDS FOR APPLE. I'M NOT AN APPLE ANALYST. I SEE HOW IT IS GOOD FOR PEOPLE, INCLUDING SOME OF MICROSOFT'S COMPETITORS, IN TERMS OF PROVIDING THE CORE INFRASTRUCTURE, AND I SEE HOW IT CAN BE MONETIZED IN TERMS OF VALUE ADD AND THE APPLICATION. AND SO, IT'S THAT INTERIM -- IT'S THAT INTERIM GROUP WHICH WOULD INCLUDE, YOU KNOW, PCs ON THE EDGE OR PHONES, IF YOU WILL, ON THE EDGE. NOT SURE HOW THAT'S GOING TO MONETIZE AT THIS STAGE. >> STEVE, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO -- >> MAYBE LESS WELL THAN IN THE PAST. >> WE HAVE TO RUN IN A MOMENT, BUT NBA RIGHTS, THE VALUATION OF NBA TEAMS, WE WERE TALKING TO JOSH HARRIS LAST WEEK, OF COURSE, WHO'S GOT A PIECE OF THE 76ERS AND NOW OWNS THE COMMANDERS, AND THIS WHOLE IDEA THAT, YOU KNOW, SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUNDS AND PENSION FUNDS ARE ALL OF A SUDDEN GOING TO BE BUYING UP SPORTS TEAMS. DO YOU THINK THIS IS A GOOD IDEA? >> I THINK IT IS NOT A BAD IDEA, CERTAINLY, TO OPEN UP THE WAYS IN WHICH YOU CAN FINANCE THE PURCHASE OF SPORTS TEAMS. I THINK NOT ONLY WOULD IT HELP WITH VALUATION, BUT IT WOULD ALSO, IF YOU WILL, STABILIZE THE FINANCINGS FOR OWNERS WHO WILL STILL HAVE TO BUY VERY LARGE STAKE FOR MANY BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, BUT I THINK IT IS A GOOD IDEA. IT NEEDS TO BE DONE CAREFULLY. I LIKE WHAT OUR LEAGUE HAS DONE, AND YET, I THINK WE AND OTHER SPORTS LEAGUES ARE GOING TO HAVE TO GET CREATIVE AND THINK ABOUT NEXT STEPS. >> ARE YOU GOING TO MISS CHARLES BARKLEY AND THE CREW ON -- IN WARNER MEDIA HERE? >> I HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO COMMENT ABOUT THAT. >> OKAY, WELL, I'M GOING TO MISS HIM IF, IN FACT, THEY DON'T GET THE RIGHTS. I'M JUST SAYIN

Share your thoughts