THE FUTURE IS HERE

Mark O'Loughlin of Sanctuary Synthetics explains ChatGPT and its ramifications for the Irish horticultural industry.

TERRY O’REGAN pursued a career in the Irish landscape sector for some 50 years as a contractor and consultant, before retiring recently. For much of that time, he was also an active advocate of ‘bigger picture’ and ‘outside the box’ thinking. He can be contacted at 087 240 7618 and terryjoregan@gmail.com.

My web guy introduced me to AI, ironically enough, on April Fool’s Day. This super impressive tech has the potential to revolutionise how we communicate and do business in all fields, including horticulture. Let’s have a look at the implications, possibilities, commercial opportunities, potential threats, and the reality of change that ChatGPT brings to the horticultural world.

A Quick Glimpse At Chatgpt

ChatGPT, based on the GPT-4 architecture, is an AI language model designed by OpenAI. It's smart enough to understand and generate human-like text, making it super useful across various industries. For the horticultural sector, ChatGPT offers multiple opportunities to streamline operations, enhance communications, and improve the customer experience. ChatGPT 3.5 version is free, while the latest, 4.0, costs a few euros a month. I urge readers to look up ‘Open AI’ and play around with it. You can easily use it on your smartphone. Warning – as rabbit holes go, this one is deep.

Implications And Possibilities

Customer Service Level Up

Integrating ChatGPT into customer service platforms can help businesses provide faster, more accurate, and personalised responses to clients. Imagine using chatbots (virtual assistants) to answer customer queries about products, installation, maintenance, and more. In my own artificial grass realm, ChatGPT can be a game-changer for answering FAQs, guiding product selection, and even offering DIY installation advice. Had it existed when I was writing my book – The Big Hairy Green Book: All About Artificial Grass (available on Amazon) – I'd have saved a LOT of time.

Communication And Collaboration Boost

ChatGPT can help improve communication and collaboration within the horticultural industry. By using this tech, businesses can speed up internal communication, reducing time spent on repetitive tasks (for example, ‘Write me a professional but firm reminder letter to debtor X…’), whilst ensuring that crucial information is shared quickly and accurately. Plus, ChatGPT can help with translating documents and facilitating communication between international partners, making global collaboration much more straightforward.

Business Operations Optimisation

Adopting ChatGPT in analysing and optimising business processes can lead to increased efficiency and reduced costs. For example, AI-driven analysis of sales data can spot patterns and trends, helping businesses make better decisions about product offerings, pricing, and promotional strategies. This can help businesses stay competitive and quickly adapt to ever-changing market demands.

Creative Content Generation

For those in marketing and content creation within the horticultural sector, ChatGPT can be an incredible asset. The AI can generate engaging and informative content such as blog posts, articles and social media updates. This can help businesses build their online presence and establish themselves as leaders in the industry.

Education And Training

ChatGPT can be utilised to develop training materials and resources, making it easier for businesses to upskill their workforce. AI-generated content can help create interactive and engaging training modules, ensuring employees have access to the most up-to-date information and best practices in the industry.

Ai And Garden Design

AI can be a game-changer here. In 2004, I bought an expensive package which promised lots. I said I'd set aside some time to explore it the next time it snowed. It's still lying unopened in a box on my shelf.

Advanced algorithms can analyse factors such as soil type, available sunlight, climate conditions, and plant preferences to create customised garden layouts that maximise aesthetic appeal and plant health. These AI-driven garden designs can also incorporate factors such as colour schemes, seasonal interest, and maintenance requirements, to ensure the final design aligns with the client's vision and needs. Additionally, AI can be employed in 3D modelling and visualisation tools, allowing clients to explore their garden designs in a virtual environment before committing to the final plan. This not only enables clients to make more informed decisions, but also streamlines the design process by reducing the need for multiple revisions and back-andforth communication.

Ai In Plant Growing And Production

AI has the potential to revolutionise plant growing and production in the horticultural industry. By employing sophisticated algorithms, AI can analyse vast amounts of data to optimise growth conditions, such as light, temperature, humidity, and nutrient levels. This ensures that plants are grown in the most efficient and sustainable manner possible, reducing resource waste and promoting healthier plant growth.

Furthermore, AI-driven systems can monitor plant health in real-time, detecting early signs of pests, diseases, or nutrient deficiencies. By providing early warnings and recommendations for remedial actions, these systems can help growers address issues proactively, reducing the risk of crop loss and ensuring consistent, high-quality plant production.

The integration of AI in garden design and plant growing/production processes demonstrates the potential for technology to significantly enhance the efficiency, sustainability, and quality of the horticultural industry. As we continue to explore and adopt these AI-driven solutions, we can expect to see even more innovative and transformative applications in the world of horticulture.

Commercial Opportunities

Embracing ChatGPT in the horticultural industry opens up new commercial opportunities for businesses. Improved customer service experiences, streamlined communication, and optimised business operations can lead to increased sales and happier clients. Furthermore, businesses can use AI-generated content to boost their marketing efforts and reach new customers.

Online marketing wise, Google and others have their own versions and there's more to come. Our ad spend has reduced significantly by virtue of using Google's AI to better target key words and phrases and getting the right people to the most appropriate landing page. Get your web people on the case asap.

Threats

Despite the many benefits, there are potential threats that come with adopting ChatGPT technology in the industry:

Job Displacement

The automation of some tasks and processes using AI could lead to job displacement for those working in customer service, data analysis, and content creation. I once did a final year college project on setting up a translation services company to serve the then developing IFSC in Dublin’s docklands. That translation service would have been wiped out overnight by ChatGPT. As the industry evolves, it's essential to consider the workforce’s impact and provide opportunities for retraining and upskilling.

Ethical Concerns

The use of AI-generated content raises ethical concerns, especially regarding data privacy and the potential for manipulation or misuse. It's crucial for businesses to establish transparent and responsible practices when using AI technology to ensure the protection of customer data and to maintain trust within the industry. Not to mention that, worst- case scenario, AI could evolve into ‘Skynet’ (remember the Terminator films?) and attempt to destroy all of humanity.

Overreliance On Ai

As businesses increasingly rely on AI technologies like ChatGPT, there's a risk of becoming overdependent on these tools. Human expertise and creativity remain vital to the horticultural industry, and it's essential to strike a balance between the use of AI and the value of human input.

Technological Barriers

I imagine we can expect to be inundated with specific packages and offerings built to help with all of the above in due course. Successfully integrating ChatGPT and other AI technologies requires investment in infrastructure, software, and employee training. For smaller businesses, these costs may be prohibitive, creating a barrier to entry and, if we're not careful, potentially widening the divide between large and small enterprises within the industry.

The Reality Of Change

The advancement of AI technologies like ChatGPT is inevitable, and the horticultural industry simply must adapt and evolve to stay competitive in this rapidly changing landscape. While there are undoubtedly challenges and risks associated with the advent of AI, the potential benefits in terms of increased efficiency, improved customer service, and enhanced communication are too significant to ignore. As a grey-haired veteran in the industry and certainly no whizz kid, I'm excited to see the potential of ChatGPT and other AI technologies unfold. Yes, it can be daunting to get one’s head around the concept but I, for one, don't want to be an April fool and get left behind. It's our responsibility as industry professionals to embrace this change, be proactive in addressing potential threats, and harness the power of AI to drive growth and success within the horticultural sector. By acknowledging the reality of change the Irish horticultural industry can harness the power of AI to shape a more efficient, responsive, and innovative future. As we continue to explore the possibilities of ChatGPT and other AI technologies, we must remain committed to balancing the benefits of automation with the value of human expertise, creativity, and ingenuity that has driven our industry. By the way, although I’m just a novice, this entire article was produced using ChatGPT with just a few prompts, a bit of editing and in a matter of minutes. It’s an almost disconcerting testament to the power and potential of AI in transforming the way we approach content creation and communication. Don’t get left behind! ✽

MARK O’LOUGHLIN is a 54-year-old mostly office-bound landscaper with grey hair who loves transforming spaces using artificial grass. He is the owner and director of Sanctuary Synthetics. Winner of five Bloom medals, Mark previously risked ridicule with his HidBin invention on Dragon’s Den. He is the author of The Big Hairy Green Book: All About Artificial Grass (available on Amazon).