Complementary Businesses Empower Humans

• The most successful technology companies are often built on a core principle of human-computer symbiosis.

• Instead of trying to replace professionals, these businesses build tools that augment their abilities, allowing them to be more effective.

• Examples:

  • PayPal: Created a hybrid fraud detection system ("Igor") where computers flagged suspicious transactions and human analysts made the final judgment. This was more effective than either a fully automated system or a fully manual one.
  • Palantir: Builds software that helps human intelligence analysts find patterns in vast datasets, combining machine processing power with human judgment to identify threats.
  • LinkedIn: Empowers human recruiters with powerful search and filtering tools, making them more effective at their jobs rather than trying to replace them.

• Builds on Computers Are Complements, Not Substitutes for Humans