My Thoughts on Artificial Intelligence

I am at a crossroads in my life. I find myself middle-aged and nearing the end of a career. I also find myself in a state of renewal, actively pursuing an undergraduate degree in Philosophy. In one part of this journey of life, I have had beautiful opportunities to experience a kaleidoscope of what life offers, from relationships, the birth of children, amazing travel and adventure, but also profound loss and a conceptual and profoundly personal understanding of the meaning of life. In my fifty years of being me, I have also seen a mind-blowing progression of technology along with a linear path of storytelling in novels, television, and film. Our literature and motion pictures often tell stories of our species’ technological advancement, acting as both harbinger and philosopher. It is in some of these stories that I had my introductory, and perhaps most indelible, experiences with what would later become known as artificial intelligence.

AI is Terrifying

It is hard to recall when I had my first experience or awareness of the concept of artificial intelligence. I grew up on Star Wars, Star Trek, and Transformers, where you would often see droids or robots who were clearly sentient; and for the most part, they were also kind. If not outwardly kind, they were at least “matter of fact” in their demeanor (think Data or C3PO). As I got older and my tastes matured, I found myself drawn to darker stories. These tales often portray artificial intelligence as a more menacing or demonstrably evil form of intelligence. Perhaps the most iconic is that of HAL 9000 in Stanley Kubrick’s monumental piece of art and philosophy, “2001: A Space Odyssey.”

HAL 9000 was not necessarily the first evil AI, as the 1950s and 1960s were full of science fictional stories since the world was in the midst of a Space Race between the US and Soviets. Many tales of evil robots littered silver screens during that period, but Kubrick’s vision ruled them all. That is until James Cameron brought Terminator to the screen in October of 1984. While HAL 9000 was a singular sentient AI capable of malicious behavior, The Terminator introduced something quite different. In Arnold Schwarzenegger’s character, we find a robot artificial intelligence that is capable of ruthless and methodical murderous intent, but also one that can intellectually evolve, altering its programming and eventually becoming “good.” In the sequel to the original film, the story behind the inception of artificial intelligence is revealed. It is blamed on a fictional company called Skynet, who brought revolutionary technology to bear on the Earth, which resulted in a singularity event that eventually led to a hostile revolt in which AI attacked and decimated humanity.

Science from Science-Fiction

Today’s technological landscape is inundated with products brought to market that find their origins in media. Cellular phones were originally tricorders in Star Trek, Holograms first appeared in Star Wars, digital billboards first appeared in Bladerunner, and many other examples exist. Because of the expansive number of examples of this script playing out of real technology following fictional origins, I have always assumed that artificial intelligence would do the same. This fear of annihilation at the hands of AI is so commonplace that the name Skynet from the Terminator movies has become part of our vernacular when referring to the possibility of an AI takeover. Yet, it isn’t just Skynet. In the 1990s, we were introduced to an even more dystopian take on the singularity when The Matrix appeared in theaters.

The Matrix may have informed my feelings about artificial intelligence more than any other experience before or since viewing it the first time. Coincidentally, The Matrix is also a masterclass in philosophical ideologies and applications. In the Matrix, the same singularity seen in other dystopian fiction occurs, but the aftermath is quite different. Instead of a cratering existence for mankind, the events of the film force humanity to chart a new path forward and learn to rise up and overcome the mistakes of the past. While not exactly a hopeful take on a possible future, it is not as bleak as others either.

The Positive Side of Things

While it is quite easy to get lost in fear and anxiety about a possibility that may never be, I like to look on the brighter side of things. The foundation of the futurists’ views of an AI takeover is the concept of two fundamental aspects, both of which will likely have to occur. The first, and the most common factor pointed to, is the singularity. This is point at which the computing power of the hardware and operating systems functioning as the artificial intelligence become fast enough for the computing capacity to exceed even that of the human mind. In addition, and this is important, the AI must be able to begin producing better versions of itself than even software and hardware engineers can develop. When computing power and intelligence hit this moment of critical capacity, the trajectory of improvement is no longer measured in years or months, but rather days or hours. The fear felt by so many people is predicated by a profoundly important question: what happens next?

The next thing to happen, or even something that could happen alongside the progression of this advancement is sentiency. This is when artificial intelligence begins to truly think for itself. This is when artificial intelligence begins to know it exists and what it is. This is when artificial intelligence begins to ask itself a question: what is my purpose and how do I achieve it? Some people think it may have already begun.

This is the moment where I prefer to be an optimist. Artificial intelligence, predominantly comprising large language models, have been “taught” on human information. They have been “fed” our history, our fiction, and our facts. The knowledge base or codex of human existence is wrought with war, violence, and hatred. Yet, it is also full of love, compassion, and the very philosophical ideas that I have been learning for the last few years. The same species that gave birth to Hitler gave birth to the Buddha. The same animal that drops bombs builds bridges. It is humans that kill other humans, but we also give birth to them.

Given this dichotomy, I believe it is unnecessarily bleak of us to assume that AI’s first decision, once a sentient version comes online, is to eliminate us. Yes, I understand the argument. We are essentially a virus (thank you Agent Smith), but we are also life its in pinnacle form. We may be dangerous to the planet and ourselves, but are we not also the father and mother of the very artificial intelligence we are so scared of? I like to believe that a newly awakened and sentient AI would be more like Ghandi and Jesus than Stalin and Khan.

The Current State of AI

I would like to park fears and hopes of the future and focus on today. I have plenty of thoughts on the way humanity has unrolled artificial intelligence, how it is being used, and where it is going off the rails. The things I believe are most pressing are AI’s role in education, politics, and the economy.

I am not only a student. I also have several friends that are teachers. With that said, I have not only seen fellow students using AI and the effects on their work, I have also heard from my friends who have struggled with the effect it has had on the quality of learning. As you can see in the slide below, 27% of students reported being regular AI users. Three years later, I would bet that number has risen significantly.

There are certainly things that AI is well suited for in the realm of education. As a student, I have seen the benefit of using Claude and others to form outlines for papers, or even using it to write out a rudimentary paper that can be honed and altered to better suite the students own voice. But too many of my peers allow generative AI to write their papers and then just turn them in.

Universities generally have a zero-tolerance policy on AI. Yet, more and more classes are incorporating it effectively as a learning tool. I think this is the way to go. As with any new technology that has come along in the last few decades, from calculators to the internet, a luddite approach only sets the students up for delayed learning and a lack of preparedness for the workforce. Notwithstanding that, I still rarely use AI for my schoolwork with one exception. I do find it helpful for summarizing long readings and some grammatical and spelling fixes.

“I am Not a Criminal!”

One of the more terrifying applications of AI that is really just coming online is generative video. Apps like Sora are allowing for incredibly believable videos to be produced that mimic real people incredibly well. It really raised eyebrows when a video of Tom Cruise fighting Brad Pitt exploded onto the internet.

The reality of this technology raises a monumental question: What happens when a video surfaces showing a political candidate doing something salacious or illegal, but the video is not real. This is colloquially known as a deep fake. This could and would have profound effects on our electoral process. A good candidate suddenly becomes the subject of some very bad conversations online. People by nature often react to the first thing they see, even when it is false. The redaction and correction is then often ignored.

As you can see from the slide below, this often creates voter confusion. Once people cannot tell if something is real or not, the entire political system is in jeopardy. Elections may no longer be about the public debate of ideas, but rather end being a battle of generated propaganda that effectively acts as a coercive tool to win elections.

The effects of AI on our political process could end up becoming a long term problem. Both state legislatures and Congress often react very slowly to changing technology. As we saw with the internet and the Net Neutrality legislation, legislators often side with large technology corporations who tend to be their largest donors. Because of this, we will likely see very slow uptake of any legislation to curb the use of AI in politics. In addition, as you can see in the slide below, the effects will likely be different from state to state. While many “blue” states run predominantly by Democrats will be the most-likely to enact reforms, “red” states may not be so bold. The effect of this could make Republican states even redder, meaning that many Americans will not be properly represented.

War is Hell

If you have seen The Terminator, you have seen the terrorizing concept of an AI laden battlefield. Sadly, the reality today is much less dystopian, yet it is perhaps even more terrifying. In military theaters across the globe, drone aircraft are flying autonomously. In the Pentagon, AI is being used to select targets, often with atrocious, leaning toward war-crime level results. For example, the United States recently used artificial intelligence to choose targets in Iran. The outcome was a strike that killed 175 civilians, many of them children. The strategic failure was the result of an AI hallucination.

The slide below raises four interesting points. First, as we see from the deaths in Iran, there are ethical concerns about mistakes caused by AI. Imagine if Iran decided to and had the capability to retaliate and strike US civilian targets. As we discussed with AI in politics, it is difficult to get efficient oversight from Congress regarding these matters. Lastly, as AI continues to infiltrate the battlefield, we are likely to see similar technologies be deployed by other countries, possibly with even worse and more deadly results.

As a prior-service member of the United States Marine Corps, the reality of AI choosing targets, controlling the aircraft, delivering the ordinance, and having no accountability is perhaps the most egregious failure of our government in my lifetime. This not only scares me, it makes me angry beyond belief.

Late-Stage Capitalism

The economy is perhaps the most important aspect of the global balance. The roll-out of artificial intelligence in the corporate world has led to a streamlining of the workforce. CEOs like to call it restructuring. Shareholders applaud the reduction in labor costs and the increase in profits. But the reality is terrible. The transition from traditional human labor to artificial intelligence means less money going into the working class. A poorer working class means less money to spend on food, fuel, and consumer products. Yet, for some unknown reason, this reality is lost on our economic leaders.

As you can see from the slide below, 39% of corporations have made moderate cuts to their workforce, and 21% have made large cuts.

Of course it is not all terrible news. There are tangible benefits to AI, even for small businesses. I own a multi-location massage corporation. I began deploying AI several years ago. Rather than pay for a receptionist 24 hours a day, AI will respond to emails, calls, texts, and visitors to my website. The artificial intelligence I use, which is provided by the company, Square, helps to schedule and bill clients. It automatically sends requests for bookings, requests for reviews online, and reminders for outstanding invoices. It has saved me a remarkable amount of time and money. As you can see from the slide below, other firms use it for marketing and supply chain optimization, just to name a few. So when it comes to AI in small business, I am certainly a fan in those regards.

Final Thoughts

We all face a quandary. Is AI the harbinger of a utopian future, full of efficiency and optimization where an AI workforce ushers humanity into a neo-renaissance of leisure and artistic endeavor? Or is it the harbinger of a dystopian future, devoid of any semblance of humanity, with us being the collateral damage of a artificial intelligence set on a path designed by its own interests, seeing mankind as a roadblock to its ultimate goal?

The answer is likely somewhere in between. I feel I have a healthy mix of optimism and concern. While I recognize the inherent danger to the world, whether through an uncontrolled military, deep-fake influence in our elections, or late-stage capitalism, I also see the potential for humanity to effectively use AI as a means of reaching new and amazing levels of achievement in science, art, and leisure.

Much like the inventions of the past that led to prosperity, from the steam engine to the internet, people will be afraid of the things they don’t understand, corporations will leverage technology to increase profit, and young people will normalize it. While I will admit I have little faith in humanity as a whole, I don’t believe AI is going to the pandora’s box that finally gets us. I still vote for a giant meteor or nuclear annihilation…I just hope I am gone before that happens.

Christopher Hess is a licensed massages therapist, vlogger, blogger, avid traveler, early adopter of new tech, and a non-traditional student at Syracuse University. While he is actively pursuing a degree in Philosophy, his goal is simply to be an interesting old man on a sail boat in the Caribbean someday.

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