MC.70: Come out and play

Hey everyone,

This week marks a significant milestone: OpenAI has become the #1 downloaded app on the App Store, surpassing even TikTok. This isn't a coincidence following the viral success of the Ghibli Theme and Starter Pack Box features.

The widespread adoption of AI tools fundamentally depends on one thing that's often overlooked in all the serious discussions about productivity and efficiency: playfulness.

Play First, Productivity Later

Remember when people first interacted with Alexa or Siri? One of the first things they'd do was ask for a joke. With new AI tools, the pattern remains the same—users want to have fun before they get serious.

The challenge with powerful tools has always been knowing what to do with them. Starting with playful, risk-free, and socially shareable experiences is essential for adoption. We shouldn't underestimate the seemingly trivial, silly, or even childish aspects of AI interaction.

Images: The Perfect Playground

Image generation represents the perfect use case for this playful entry point:

1. Images are a universal language

2. Results are instantaneous

3. The content is extremely viral and shareable

This explains why features like DALL-E, Midjourney, and now OpenAI's image generation capabilities spread so rapidly across social media. They're fun, accessible, and immediately rewarding.

From Sandbox to Workspace

This playful approach naturally leads to questions about the gamification of AI—how sandbox environments, open-world exploration, and game mechanics can be leveraged to make complex AI tools more approachable.

Behind all the serious talk about productivity, efficiency, and superhuman capabilities, the key to AI adoption might simply be the fun factor. We create attention and usage through play, but this creates the perfect environment for users to discover, test, experiment, and eventually transfer what they've learned to professional applications.

The Hidden Strategy

While companies market AI as serious productivity tools, the most successful ones understand that users need to play before they work. By creating delightful, low-stakes experiences, they're building the on-ramp that leads to more sophisticated usage.

So next time you see a seemingly frivolous AI feature going viral, remember: it's not just entertainment—it's a brilliantly effective adoption strategy. The path to productivity often begins with play.

Cheers, Olivier

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Until next Thursday 🎉