Why I Hesitate Using the Word "AI" in My Work
Artificial Intelligence should be a Tool and not a selling point
Dear Duniyawaalo (People of the World),
Not a single day goes by these days without AI being slapped onto products as if it were nothing short of magic.
AI-driven to-do lists
AI-enhanced email filters
AI-powered Toothbrushes (Really!)
If you believe in the marketing hype, it would seem that we are already living in the sci-fi world.
As a full-stack developer, I use AI-based tools every single day, but I hesitate to use the term “AI” in my work.
Why?
Because I think it has lost its meaning. Overuse of the word AI has led to skepticism and, in many cases, outright distrust.
In this post, I will try to explain that focusing on practical benefits, rather than hyped-up AI jargon, is the better way forward.
Issues With AI Hype
I used to think that AI was a term reserved for research labs and deep tech.
Lately, it seems like every product claims to be AI-powered in some way, shape, or form.
The problem?
Overuse leads to Skepticism
When everything comes with a label of AI, people stop believing the claims.Customers get Confused
Many so-called AI products are automated rule-based scripts. It is misleading for users.Hype erodes Trust
Overpromising and underdelivering damages the credibility.
Honestly, I believe that we are nowhere close to true artificial intelligence.
Tech companies are selling us all an illusion that AI is this all-knowing, human-like intelligence.
Pattern Matching, Not Intelligence
I want to tell it like I see it.
What we call AI today is not as intelligent as most people are made to believe.
In reality, tools like ChatGPT are trained on massive datasets. It does not “understand”. It generates responses by calculating the most statistically probable next word based on their training data.
Even when I ask ChatGPT a question, it does not retrieve facts like a human expert. It “predicts” the next best response based on patterns in the text that it has seen before. It does not have independent reasoning, emotions, or original thought.
I see AI as an extremely powerful TOOL, but not intelligence
Why AI-centric Messaging Fails
The more AI is pushed to the front of marketing, the less people trust it.
People associate AI with automation replacing Humans
It is not surprising that many fear AI will take jobs, reduce human input, or end up making decisions they don’t understand.Creates fear
The inherent AI bias, misleading deepfakes, and AI “hallucinations” (wrong but confident responses) make users cautious and fearful.AI-powered often means “some algorithm”
Without clear explanations, AI becomes this black box that people don’t understand. And we all know that people don’t trust what they do not understand.
For example, which product would you prefer? The one that says
“AI-driven performance enhancement” OR
“Helps you make better decisions based on real-time insights”
I would choose the second one any day because it focuses on “value” and not hype or buzzwords. This is what I aim for in my work, too.
How I use AI without calling it AI
I use tools like ChatGPT to satisfy my intellectual curiosity.
Whenever I have a question or get stuck, I engage with ChatGPT in an interactive dialog that helps me explore topics more deeply.
Before ChatGPT, I would have aimlessly searched Google.
I am actually thinking of creating a video series called “AI Show and Tell”. However, I remind myself how much I dislike the word AI.
Instead, I plan to focus on how AI tools enhance thinking, automate repetitive & tedious work, and improve problem-solving.
As a result, some alternative names I am considering instead of “AI Show and Tell” are:
Curiosity Engine — helps answer questions.
Thinking Out Loud — showcases real-time learning (My preference).
The Curiosity Lab — an experiment in discovery.
By removing AI from my branding, my focus stays on the outcome, not the technology.
AI is a tool, not a selling point
For AI to become mainstream, I think instead of leading with AI, the focus should be on better messaging that clearly identifies value.
Talk about benefits, not the tech: “Saves you 5 hours a week” is more compelling than “AI-powered assistant”
Transparency about what AI does: No magic — just better automation
A tool and not a replacement for Thinking: Augmentation, not autonomy
As I plan to build applications that leverage AI, I choose not to sell them as “AI-powered” but as an innovative and efficient problem-solving solution.
AI without hype
Please don’t get me wrong. I am NOT anti-AI.
I love using AI-based tools. But I refuse to add more fuel to the fire for the cycle of AI hype.
AI is not intelligent — it is predictive.
It is absolutely an incredible tool, but calling it “artificial intelligence” oversells what it can actually do.
So, instead of using AI as a marketing buzzword, I wish we focused on how AI helps us to:
Think Better
Work Smarter
Solve real problems
Because, in the end, that is all that matters.
What do you think?
Have you noticed AI fatigue?
Do you trust products that are marketed as “AI-powered”?
Does the term AI make you skeptical?
I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
❤️Rajneesh