AInsights: Your executive-level insights making sense of the latest in generative AI…

My new book, Mindshift: Transform Leadership, Drive Innovation, and Reshape the Future, just launched. I’m catching up on the biggest news coming out of the genAI world.

Here’s more from OpenAI.

The company recently announced its competitor to Google Search and in some respect, Perplexity, but so far, only in specific applications such as writing and coding. Canvas, provides a new window into collaborating with generative AI.

On the heels of Google’s NotebookLM and building on integrated ‘Co-Pilots’ we see in popular software suites across the board, OpenAI’s Canvas offers the ability to collaborate with AI in the creation of written works and code.

If you’ve used Perplexity Pages, you’ll find that the key difference is that Canvas is more of a collaboration tool in the creation process. Perplexity Pages offers users the ability to create, edit, and publish content derived from Perplexity search and research projects. I use both.

Explaining Canvas

Canvas features a dual-panel window that features a side-by-side layout where users can engage in regular chat while simultaneously working on projects in a dedicated workspace.

The left side is where you partner with ChatGPT. The right side reflects your work, in this case, writing for code.

On the collaboration side, you’ll find a simple interface to chat, upload materials, and collaborate with the AI, which is then reflected in the right panel.

The writing and coding side of the interface offers creating and editing tools similar to those found in Microsoft Co-Pilot, Medium, and Substack. Highlighting specific sections of work here, guides ChatGPT where to help you, make improvements, or offer suggestions.

Additional Details:

Uploading additional files can allow ChatGPT to customize your work or collaborate with you specific to the task at hand.

The interface allows you to edit text or code directly and offers various shortcuts for tasks such as adjusting writing length or debugging code.

You can restore previous versions of their work, which is particularly useful during iterative processes.

Also Canvas can serve as an editor or coach guiding users where areas can be improved, offering suggestions in how to do so.

Essentially, Canvas is an intelligent collaboration partner, collaborative workspace, and a real-time doc and code editor.

Using Canvas, I asked it to tell me more about what it is and how it helps executives. The prompt is the image used for this post! Here’s what was shared…

The Canvas feature changes how we collaborate with AI. Instead of just exchanging words in a chat, Canvas allows us to dive deeper into thoughts, strategies, and ideas. Imagine mapping out a complex AI roadmap, iterating on new concepts, or drafting frameworks—all visually, all in one place.

This is more than a chatbot; it’s a workspace where context persists, where your ideas and insights don’t get lost in the scroll. You can take a conversation to the next level, build on your thinking, and align it with your team’s objectives.

Canvas is designed to help us move from conversation to creation seamlessly. Whether you’re mapping out product strategies, crafting messaging, or refining AI-driven solutions, it offers the clarity of a shared digital space.

This is about evolving our relationship with generative AI—from talking about ideas to building with them.

The response is helpful. As you can see in the post images at the top, the split window is where Canvas changes the usual ChatGPT experience. So now, with a dual interface, you can upload materials, further prompt the interface, and shape the content into a publishable or shareable format. Shift to the right panel and now you can edit, inline, the text to also be publishable or shareable. Highlight text and you can further collaborate with ChatGPT around specific areas to adjust tone, length, or enhance the content to specific outcomes.

AInsights

OpenAI Canvas represents a creative advancement in how business users can leverage AI for productivity. Its dual-window interface promotes deeper collaboration between users and AI, making it a new type of tool for executives to enhance their workflows, how they create, methods for research and analytics, and more.

Here are a handful of potential use cases for executives in their everyday work:

1. Enhanced Content Creation

Marketing Materials: Executives can utilize Canvas to draft and refine marketing content, ensuring that messaging aligns with brand voice and strategy.

Technical Documentation: The tool aids in creating clear and concise technical documents by allowing users to collaborate closely with AI on complex subjects.

2. Improved Coding Efficiency

Code Development: Developers can leverage Canvas for coding projects, receiving inline feedback and suggestions from ChatGPT while maintaining the overall context of the codebase.

Debugging Support: The ability to highlight code sections and request specific debugging assistance helps streamline the development process.

3. Collaborative Team Projects

Real-Time Collaboration: Teams can work together in real time, using Canvas as a platform for brainstorming sessions or project planning, facilitating better communication and idea sharing.

Iterative Refinement: Executives can treat Canvas as a collaborative partner, iterating on drafts or code until the desired outcome is achieved, rather than expecting perfection on the first attempt1.

4. Training and Development

Skill Enhancement: By using Canvas, employees can improve their writing and coding skills through direct interaction with AI, receiving immediate feedback that fosters learning and development.

5. Data-Driven Decision Making

Report Generation: Executives can generate reports by collating data inputs through Canvas, enhancing the efficiency of data analysis tasks.

Presentation Preparation: The tool can assist in drafting presentations by organizing thoughts and providing structured content suggestions.

For the time being, I’m going to use Canvas as my authoring tool for this newsletter. Let’s see how it goes!

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