2023 in review and the future is bright with AI for 2024

2023 has been an absolute roller coaster of a year. I experienced the lows of the low to incredible highs and everything in between. It has been a challenge.

My biggest takeaway in 2023 was that I needed to spend more creative time building things, reading, and learning away from work. This year, I also traveled with the family, which was a much-needed reset for my brain. This post's main image is my picture from our family trip to Lapland, Finland, to experience the Northern Lights.

2023 Highlights

• I started speaking at conferences again at the end of 2022, which whetted my appetite for more. I spoke at three events in 2023 and have already booked more talks for 2024.
• I was diving deep into BI & Looker, which has been a lot of fun getting my hands dirty again with data.
• AI has been a major part of my discussions and focus for 2023. I even built some AI bots for various tasks, which relieved time pressure after building these.
• First-time mountain biking in the Italian Dolomites. What a fantastic experience. 
• Camping! We continue exploring with our Camper Van, continually exploring more countries and campsites. It was a lot of fun, and we met many friendly people.
• I read some incredible books this year which I will soon summarize in future blog posts.

Goals 2024

• 1'000 cycling kilometers on my bikes this summer.
• Average three times a week in the gym.
• Read twelve books this year.
• Reactivate the Tech Community in Switzerland!
• Create or contribute to new Open Source projects
• Write more blog posts
• Reach out to one old friend/colleague once a month
• Build more projects
• Cherish the family time

Predictions for 2024

AI

2024 will continue to be all things AI. This year, we will see models increase in effectiveness up to 10 times better than in 2023. The chip manufacturers and the models are developing so quickly that this will be a reality this year.

Crypto Bull Run

December was a booming month for a relatively quiet year for Crypto. The rumor mill kicked into high gear that the SEC would approve Bitcoin ETFs. At the time of this writing, the SEC did approve Bitcoin ETF, which will finally allow institutional investors to be part of the Bitcoin market. Additionally, since Bitcoin is approved, I expect Ethereum to follow suit with its ETF before the end of 2024.

Now that ETFs are approved soon, we will have another Bitcoin halving scheduled for the end of April 2024 (Countdown clock here). It could be the perfect storm for another bull run. Combined with a US election year, that should put the entire market into overdrive. Fingers crossed.

Diet Pills

I also predict that this year, we will see Ozempic/Semaglutide (the diet drugs) significantly impact the food culture in 2024. We've already seen movie stars and others lose tons of weight with these drugs as the drug curbs your desire to eat, drink alcohol, etc. However, if more of the society starts taking these drugs we might see it start impacting fast food and junk food companies. It's a long-shot prediction, but I see the signs already in the US. 

Will I take these pills? No, but I will watch what happens from the sidelines.

My last thoughts

A reoccurring thought is that I need to reconnect with my friends and re-launch the Swiss tech community. I must continue to give back and support the community the best way I can. Furthermore, I want to be closer to the action this year regarding both hands-on with AI and building.

Let's get 2024 off to a good start. Be kind to one another, and let's make every day better than the last!

Brian