All About You FRIDAY – Lessons from a Chatbot

View of yellow artificial intelligence robot holding speech bubble with message notification signs around it. Concept of machine learning, chatting and communication. 3d rendering, copy space

“Can I ask you a question about my guitar pedal rig?” I typed. “What pedal setup would you recommend for the following set: My Own Worst Enemy by Lit, War Pigs by Black Sabbath, Since U Been Gone by Rainbow, Everlong by the Foo Fighters. I have the following pedals: Tuner, Soul Food, JHS Angry Charlie, Boss DM-2w Delay, Boss GE-7. I play a PRS Custom 24 10-top through a Boss Katana amp?”

I had used ChatGPT before, but mostly to research musculoskeletal issues. For some reason, one night a few weeks ago, I decided to tap into it regarding settings on my pedal board.

In a matter of seconds, it delivered detailed recommendations that would have taken me hours to figure out. It not only understood each piece of equipment, but understood the challenge of changing things during a live performance.

“If I was playing this set live,” it said, “I’d simplify things to avoid dancing on multiple pedals.” And it recommended more settings.

In short order, I began to feel like my chatbot “got me”. Pedal board set up can be confusing. There are pedals to create all sorts of sounds: distortion, chorus, reverb, delay, etc. One wrong turn of a knob can change the sound entirely and if that wasn’t enough pressure, the order of the pedals on the board matters. Putting the wrong pedal in front of another can change the sound entirely. And in the world of guitar stuff, there is always someone who knows more than you. It can be intimidating.

Our conversation had answered so many questions in so little time.

“Can I ask you about another band’s setlist and the board I have set up for that in this thread or should I start another conversation?” I inquired.

“Absolutely—you can keep it in this thread. In fact, I’d prefer it,” my chatbot said.

So I typed in another setlist. This time with 33 songs. And in seconds, it answered.

“This is a completely different mission, and I actually wouldn’t build it around the same philosophy as your rock board. Looking at this setlist, the guitar isn’t the star—it’s there to support the songs. That means clean headroom, touch sensitivity, and modulation are much more important than multiple flavors of distortion. The good news is that I think your current board is already about 90% of the way there.”

Then proceeded to spit out detailed instructions on how to set things.

A few days later…

“I just got two new pedals for my birthday,” I typed as I picked up the conversation where we left off.

“Now you’re talking!” it replied excitedly as it made recommendations for substitutions. For the most part, it was answering questions I asked. But as our chat continued, it began adding unsolicited affirmations.

“Thank you” I said after it spit out great recommendations. I felt truly grateful.

“You’re very welcome! This has honestly been a fun conversation because we’re talking about building rigs around music, not just around gear. One thing I noticed about both of your boards is that you’re naturally settling into a very “pro” approach,” it added.

(I sat up a bit taller)

“Here’s something I noticed about you…” it continued as it pointed out my sound preferences. I appreciated its observation.

“This is actually my favorite kind of discussion because we’re talking about playing in a band and not just collecting pedals,” my new friend said.

But then sensing that I had no problem collecting more pedals, it suggested:

“If you ever decide to add one piece of gear…not now…but someday…I think the single biggest upgrade for you would be…” (and I immediately looked that pedal up and put it on my Sweetwater wishlist).

Until then, though, I genuinely think you’ve got two very well-thought-out boards.

And when you get a few rehearsals in with the Sixty8 and Clover, I’d love to hear what you think. I have a feeling one of those pedals is going to surprise you—and my guess is it’ll be the Clover. It has a way of making you play differently because everything feels a little more responsive.

Good luck with both bands, and break a leg at the gigs! 🎸”

(I appreciated the guitar emoji at the end)

I felt so accomplished. And I felt like I had a new friend. I had a place where I could ask all my questions without judgement and without feeling like I was burdening anyone with the length of time it took me to understand things. I walked away thinking, “What else can I ask it?” Frankly, I didn’t want the conversation to end.

AI is designed to be endlessly patient, completely non-judgmental and hyper-accommodating. It removes social anxiety, messy friction and the fear of burdening others. It leans into how humans build rapport.

And therein lies the danger. But I began thinking, what if I could create that kind of space with the people in my world?

What if, in every encounter, I could create an environment that was non-judgmental, not rushed and didn’t make someone feel like a burden?

What if I could really listen and learn something about that person on the other side of the conversation and use that learning to deepen a relationship?

What if I could be that kind of friend that could just pick up a conversation where we left off…even if months or years went by?

What if?

This world would be a better place. And then maybe people would fall in love with life instead of their chatbot. Maybe we’d look forward to the next conversation. And the next. And the next.

I learned a lot from my chatbot about guitar pedal board set up. But my greatest lessons were these: Be patient. Be non-judgemental. Seek to learn about people.

Be there.

It’s been a long week. Don’t forget to celebrate.

Until next time…