Case Study:
Titans of Technology

An exploration of the triggers, payoffs and other Activation factors found in four of the most influential and iconic figures in technology and business:

  • Susan Wojcicki of YouTube
  • Jeff Bezos of Amazon
  • Mark Zuckerberg of Meta
  • Elon Musk of SpaceX and Tesla

Why create the Titans of Technology case study?

In an era where the footprints of the extraordinary are digitally documented, we've embarked on a series of studies to dissect the essence of achievement. Our subjects, luminaries in their fields, are not merely successful; they are transformative, their actions rippling through industries. This investigation seeks to unearth the common threads of behaviour and action that propel these individuals beyond the ordinary.

How: Enrolling an AI without additional training, we set it the task of completing the Activation assessment to scrutinise these figures' behavioural blueprints. Our method exactly mirrors human analysis, ensuring a nuanced understanding of their inner triggers and payoffs.

The benefits? Profound. This study offers humanity a lens through which to view the mechanics of what really triggers people into action, and what they get from it. But it's not just about recognising patterns but empowering individuals.

By participating in the same assessment, anyone can reflect on their own potential, benchmarking against these titans. The activation assessment is a tool for self-awareness, decision-making, and personal growth, revealing behaviours that either propel or impede progress.

Our subjects

Susan Wojcicki

Susan Wojcicki

As YouTube's CEO, Susan Wojcicki has been pivotal in turning the platform into a global content hub, empowering creators and changing how content is consumed. Her background in Google's early days and her commitment to inclusivity and innovation define her influential role in media.

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Jeff Bezos

Jeff Bezos founded Amazon, transforming it from an online bookstore into a giant in retail and cloud computing with AWS. Known for his customer-centric approach, his vision has made Amazon a synonym for e-commerce, reshaping how we shop, read, and even how businesses operate worldwide.

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Jeff Bezos
Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg

Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder of Facebook (now Meta), has connected billions through social networking, fundamentally altering how people interact globally. His focus has been on scaling communication, privacy issues, and now, the metaverse, aiming to redefine digital social experiences.

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Elon Musk

Elon Musk is synonymous with groundbreaking innovation, leading Tesla in electric vehicles and SpaceX in commercial spaceflight. His ventures, including Neuralink and The Boring Company, reflect his audacious goals to revolutionize transportation, energy, and ultimately, life beyond Earth, driven by his belief in sustainable progress.

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Elon Musk
Key findings

Key findings

When we look at the individual Activation reports created for our four subjects, two payoffs (we call them intrinsic rewards) stand out:

The Catalyst: The Catalyst behaviour depicts the preference for thinking differently, for rising to the hard challenges and even rattling cages if that's what's needed. Our subjects were all observed by our AI agent to have this behavioural trait in spades, something that can be seen in the disruptive successes they have all achieved.
The Producer: This payoff preference is seen where someone is driven to get results, achieving more as they go, spurred on by recognition of their results. It refers to the internal satisfaction that people experience when they are able to make things happen, accomplish tasks, or bring projects to completion.

How do your own Activation factors compare? Create your own free Activation assessment to find out.

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How observable behaviour can create accurate insight

Promana's assessments support people in gaining objective insights from their subjective experiences

As well as being more noticeable than personality, behaviours can (and should) change and adapt depending on the situational context.

For example, while personality is unlikely to vary between two different meetings, behaviours can and often should adjust based on the objectives of the meeting and the individuals involved.

That's the Promana advantage.

Learn more

More on the case study methodology

When we sought to use AI to explore our subjects' Activation factors, we chose a straightforward approach. We provided Grok, (the advanced AI developed by xAI) with the same survey prompts a human respondent would receive. Grok completed the survey phase just as a human would, offering responses as any individual familiar with the subject person would do.

Why Grok?: Grok stands out for its ability to synthesise vast data sets to draw coherent, insightful conclusions. Its design allows for an outside perspective on humanity which, when applied to understanding someone, brings to light patterns, paradigms and behaviours as though a human had conducted the assessment.

Validity of AI Insights: With its capacity to process and analyse information on a scale beyond human capability, Grok brings to the table a depth of analysis that matches most human insights. This extensive data processing power ensures that the results are informed and nuanced.

Consistency and Human-Likeness: Our standard survey processing revealed that Grok maintained consistency across responses, displaying characteristics akin to human reasoning. This consistency check underscored the AI's ability to engage with the survey in a manner that closely resembles human thought processes, affirming the validity of its responses.

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