Alex Banks

The Signal

Writer & Founder

GrowHub

Founder & CEO

Harley

Co-Founder & CEO

DataCamp

Instructor

Tribescaler

Co-Founder

Building a better future with AI

Alex Banks is a founder, creator and investor. He reaches over 1 million people on social media each week with insights into the world of artificial intelligence (AI).

He is the founder and writer of The Signal, a weekly newsletter that cuts through the AI noise to over 40,000+ readers.

Alex is also an active early-stage investor and advisor to startups across the AI and technology landscape.

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👉 All partnerships & enquiries: contact@noisemedia.ai

Writer

This is the future of education.

Let me explain…

Meet Synthesis: The world's first AI-powered math tutor.

→ Warm, patient, encouraging
→ Adapts to your child's learning style
→ Real-time speech interaction
→ Unlimited follow-up questions
→ Visual explanations on demand

Traditional education is a one-size-fits-all approach.

But every child learns differently.

Imagine having:

• A tutor available 24/7
• Perfect patience and understanding
• Personalised learning paths
• Interactive visual explanations
• The ability to ask "why?" endlessly

My takeaway:

I wish I had this when I was younger.

I hated math because my teacher had one way of explaining things—and if you didn't get it, tough luck.

We’re already seeing this trickle through to the current education system.

At Austin’s Alpha School students spend just two hours daily with AI tutors.

The remainder of their day is spent developing skills like public speaking and financial literacy.

Technology handles personalised instruction.

Human teachers focus on providing what machines cannot: emotional support and real-world guidance.

Follow me Alex Banks for daily AI highlights and insights.

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Subscribe to my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/e9UcAxTd

Google Sheets just got AI superpowers.

The new "=AI()" function is a game-changer:

→ Native LLM integration directly inside your spreadsheets
→ Understands cell contents and generates text based on your instructions
→ Part of Gemini for Google Workspace Alpha

You can use the AI function to:

• Generate text: =AI("Create a slogan for this event in 10 words", A2)
• Analyze sentiment: =AI("Is this review positive or negative?", B3)
• Categorize data: =AI("Sort this into business, personal, or other", C4)
• Summarize information: =AI("Give me the key points in 3 bullets", D5)

Current limitations:

→ Responses are limited to text only
→ It doesn't access your entire spreadsheet
→ Only uses referenced cells for context
→ Still in experimental phase

My takeaway:

This is the first native integration of an LLM within sheets—you no longer need to add your own API key.

I'm based in the UK and have a Google Workspace account.

Whilst I have access to the Gemini side panel in Sheets for help with ideating formulas, I'm still waiting for the AI function to roll out this side of the pond.

This feature is also available as part of their early access testing programme, Google Workspace Labs.

I'm now kicking myself for memorising all those finance formulas.

Follow me Alex Banks for daily AI highlights and insights.

P.S. If you want to start leveraging AI today, subscribe to my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/e9UcAxTd

Video credit: @itsPaulAi on X

The Godfather of AI just dropped a mind-shifting idea.

Geoffrey Hinton believes we’ve misunderstood human intelligence:

We aren't logical reasoning machines. We're analogy engines.

Instead of deduction, we think through resonance and pattern-matching.

Here's why this matters:

• We've designed AI systems assuming humans are logical 
• Our reasoning ability is just a thin layer on top 
• Our true intelligence is emotional and analogical

Think about how you choose a restaurant in a new city:

→ You don't logically analyse every menu and price point 
→ You think “This reminds me of that great pizza place back home”
→ You use emotional resonance, not rational calculation 

You decide based on "vibes," not logic.

My takeaway:

Hinton rightly states that we have a thin layer of reasoning on top in order to do things like mathematics, but our primary decision-making engine is through analogies.

As LLMs get smarter and as we advance to AGI, we may need to reconsider our most fundamental assumptions about human thinking.

It turns out, we’re much less rational than we thought.

Follow me Alex Banks for daily AI highlights and insights.

P.S. This idea was from my newsletter, The Signal. If you want to start leveraging AI today, subscribe here: https://lnkd.in/e9UcAxTd

The CEO of Fiverr ($1B company) internal memo about AI:

Micha Kaufman just sent a wake-up call to his entire team.

“AI is coming for your jobs. Heck, it's coming for my job too.”

His message is brutally honest.

It doesn't matter if you're a programmer, designer, product manager, or lawyer:

• “Easy tasks” are going extinct
• “Hard tasks” will become the new easy
• “Impossible tasks” will be the new hard

I can't help but think of what Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, famously said:

“Instead of thinking about AI as replacing the work of 50% of the people, you should think that AI will do 50% of the work for 100% of the people... AI will not take your job. AI used by somebody else will take your job.”

This is a powerful reframe of the AI productivity narrative.

Rather than viewing AI as a job killer, he’s positioning it as a universal productivity multiplier.

The message is clear.

To stay ahead we must:

• Embrace AI daily with small changes
• Stay updated with the latest developments
• Learn how to apply it meaningfully in our work

Over 45,000+ others are already doing this.

If you want to start leveraging AI today, subscribe to my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/e9UcAxTd

Follow me Alex Banks for daily AI highlights and insights.

I sat down with the CEO of Microsoft.

Here's how Satya Nadella sees the future of AI:

I'm at Microsoft Build 2025 in Seattle right now.

I asked Satya how Microsoft is ensuring everyone benefits from AI advancements.

Their recent announcements showed exactly what that looks like:

1. Healthcare 

→ Stanford handles 4,000 tumour board patients yearly
→ New AI agent orchestrator cuts review time from hours to minutes
→ Analyses patient data across multiple medical disciplines
→ Frees up clinicians to focus on treatment decisions

2. Education 

→ World Bank + Peru partnership reaches 500 teachers, 200 schools
→ AI generates personalised learning materials instantly
→ 15-day prep work now takes 3 seconds
→ Transforms education from traditional to student-centred

My takeaway:

AI is about empowering every person and every organisation on the planet to achieve more.

We’re now seeing this materialise into real-world impact.

Healthcare and education are two of the sectors that excite me the most when it comes to the thoughtful application of AI.

Sitting in Satya's keynote made me realise we’re starting to see a glimpse into the future of what this technology is capable of achieving.

And I believe this is a future we can all get behind.

Follow me Alex Banks for daily AI highlights and insights.

Want to start leveraging AI?
Subscribe to my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/e9UcAxTd

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