How large should the initial team be for an AI project? Perhaps a good guide is to use Jeff Bezos’ “two pizza rule.”10 In other words, is this enough to feed the people who are participating?
Oh, and there should be no rush to build the team. Everyone must be highly focused on success and understand the importance of the project. If there is little to show from the AI project, the prospects for future initiatives could be in jeopardy.
The team will need a leader who generally has a business or operational background but also has some technical skills. Such a person should be able to identify the business case for the AI project but also communicate the vision to multiple stakeholders in the company, such as the IT department and senior management.
In terms of the technical people, there will probably not be a need for a PhD in AI. While such people are brilliant, they are often focused primarily on innovations in the field, such as by refining models or creating new ones. These skillsets are usually not essential for an AI pilot.
Rather, look for those people who have a background in software engineering or data science. However, as noted earlier in the chapter, these people may not have a strong background in AI. Because of this, there may be a need to have them spend a few months of training on learning the core principles of machine learning and deep learning. There should also be a focus on understanding how to use AI platforms, such as TensorFlow.
Given the challenges, it may be a good idea to seek the help of consultants, who can help identify the AI opportunities but also provide advice on data preparation and the development of the models.
Since an AI pilot will be experimental, the team should have people who are willing to take risks and are open minded. If not, progress could be extremely difficult.
Leave a Reply