Building an AI Brain: Lessons from a Failed Attempt and How We’re Building v2.0

In this episode of the eComFuel podcast, Andrew Youderian and Patrick Ryan discuss their experiences with integrating AI into eCommerce Fuel. They recount their initial failed attempt to build a custom AI bot two years prior, highlighting the technological limitations and high costs at the time. They then detail their current, more successful endeavor, attributing the progress to advancements in AI technology, particularly Google's Gemini and its comprehensive cloud infrastructure. The conversation covers the differences between traditional and vector databases, the importance of context windows, and the selection of AI talent. They also explore how AI is being used to enhance team efficiency, maintain data privacy, and improve member connections within the eCommerce Fuel community, emphasizing that AI serves as a tool to augment human interaction rather than replace it. The episode concludes with a discussion about the potential rollout of member-facing AI tools to improve forum search capabilities.