It's a RevolAItion: What the Past Can Teach Us about the Future of AI

WE ARE DOOMED!

Writers, designers, actors, coaches, analysts, teachers, traders, doctors, artists, receptionists, software engineers, administrators, researchers, surgical assistants, musicians, programmers…

OBSOLETE!

AI is replacing everyone — at least, that is what a large swathe of the Socialnet would have us believe.

Fear-mongering tabloids and click-bait headlines predict human extinction, mass surveillance, deepfake identity theft, war, and global unemployment.

Experienced industry professionals wonder how to safeguard their skills against powerful supercomputers that can deliver better results in less time (and for far less money).

New graduates see their qualifications dwindle in value as the entry-level jobs they hope to acquire are replaced by automated systems.

It is a bleak picture that requires little imagination to paint.

What is Artificial Intelligence?

The?Encyclopedia Britannica?states that artificial intelligence (AI) is “the ability of a digital computer or computer-controlled robot to perform tasks commonly associated with intelligent beings.”

Multiple sources share similar definitions, stating that AI is a “simulation of human intelligence”.

Regardless of how AI is defined, the capacity of technologies — such as robotics, neural networks, natural language processing, and virtual reality — is improving exponentially, and the world is transforming.

The question many are asking is, “Is this a good thing?”

A Brief History of AnxAIety

New tech is scary, not because it is a threat but because it is new.

People have long been wary of development and change. Socrates decried the written word; he was fearful that writing things down would cause people to become forgetful.

In the 16th century, there were concerns that the printing press would make books too readily available and that the population would suffer from information overload.

Jonas Hanway, the first man to carry an umbrella in England, was widely abused. Rubbish was thrown at him, and coach drivers feared the invention threatened their business; one even went so far as to try and run Hanway over.

Trains, elevators, and the horseless carriage (car) were all boycotted. Bicycles were unsafe and impractical. Electricity was feared. Light bulbs were mocked. Telephones were deemed useless. Radio distracted young people from their studies and kept them awake at night.

Throughout history, doubt, fear, and a reluctance to accept the changes brought by each wave of progress has been rife. People experience discomfort around things they do not know or understand — very often, this discomfort translates as fear.

New tech is scary, not because it is a threat but because it is new — people do not know or understand it.

However, although Artificial Intelligence is a modern development, it is not a new concept.

In an 1872 novel,?Erewhon, Samuel Butler introduced the concept of “machines that think”. It was a post-Industrial Revolution world; 15 years previously, Darwin had published On the Origin of Species. The Theory of Evolution still dominated conversations around the globe — science, religion, politics, news, and family dinners were all impacted. So, too, were the arts.

The climate was perfect to mesh ideas and generate new ones.

Was it too far-fetched to imagine that machines would one day evolve to be able to think?

Almost 80 years later, in 1950, science fiction became a scientific probability when Alan Turing published a paper,?Computing Machinery and Intelligence. In it, he explored the mathematical possibility of artificial intelligence. He talked about a machine that could communicate — via typed messages — in a way that people would not know they were interacting with a machine.

By the mid-1960s, Joseph Weizenbaum at MIT wrote the first natural language processing program,?ELIZA?and the first chatbot was born.

From Chatbots to “Machines that Think”

Nowadays, chatbots are commonplace, from automated online customer service support to voice recognition chatbots such as Siri and Alexa.

However, chatbots are merely one facet of a group of technologies transforming societies and economies worldwide.

Facial recognition is used to identify people in images, unlock phones and access bank cards.

Other image recognition technologies are used to generate AI art, complete Google searches, and even diagnose health issues.

Voice recognition software transcribes, conveys messages, and follows simple commands.

Until recently, AI has been programmed to solve problems using complex pattern recognition — commonly called specialised or narrow AI.

Narrow AI varies drastically from human intelligence – it can only complete tasks it was "trained" to do. On the other hand, humans apply diverse skills to complete a range of tasks — we use general intelligence.

CHAT GPT, alongside other AI developments, have rocked the world because it employs AGI (Artificial General Intelligence) — in other words, it can complete a wide range of tasks that it was not “programmed” to complete.

With the application of AGI, artificial intelligence can not only analyse data and predict trends. It can write articles, books and poetry, create music and art, mimic human voices, complete monotonous tasks, deliver training, develop apps, and deal with customer service enquiries.

And this barely scratches the surface. In the future, will there be any need for actual people to do the work?

Of course, there will be.

The RevolAItion

AI and AGI are an up-levelling – a revolution.

An opening of doors and possibilities.

They offer an opportunity to learn, create and develop on a whole new level.

The Agricultural Revolution?changed how humans produced, consumed and stored food.

The Industrial Revolution?changed how humans produced, consumed and used goods.

The Technological Revolution?is changing how humans produce, consume, and apply information.

Each Revolution boosts efficiencies, improves learning, and inspires innovation in art, science, language, culture, and society.

The skills of today are the foundation for the skills of tomorrow.

Artificial Intelligence is an evolution.

That does not mean it is a fight for survival. People-based work is not “going extinct”.

As in previous times of transformational development, some skills — in their current form — will gradually become less in demand.

However, this shrinking in demand will not be because AI has made skilled professionals obsolete; it will be because those skills have evolved with the technology.

The skills of today are the foundation for the skills of tomorrow. New professions will emerge. Old professions will change.

That is progress.

Progress does not remove people from the equation; it feeds breakthroughs and advancements that shape the future.

The rapid advancement of digital cameras over the last 30 years means most people can now take decent pictures with their phones.

Nevertheless, photographers are still in demand.

In many ways, the techniques photographers use today are rooted in the origins of photography — almost two centuries ago. However, the skills have evolved alongside technology — and the processes and results are significantly improved.

We Still have Thousands of Blacksmiths.

Blacksmiths are not a rarity — it is not an antiquated, out-of-demand profession. Many industrial workers, such as welders and metalworkers, utilise the same techniques as blacksmiths of yore.

Thanks to “black smithery” developments, today’s tools speed up complex processes and increase workplace safety. Modern-day blacksmiths have a reduced risk of injury. They can complete tasks in much less time and with more accuracy.

Development in multiple industries has served and continues to serve people.

The beauty in development is in the potential it holds. AI and AGI can improve the quality of life for generations.

It can facilitate learning, improve healthcare, reduce the potential for injury, speed up processes, create opportunities in business, and so much more.

AI may be able to interpret vast amounts of information and data, but no meaning is assigned. If the data holds bias, AI cannot recognise it. Humans still have much work to do here.

In a similar vein, AI is unable to fact-check or verify the information it is analysing.

Artificial Intelligence cannot build relationships. Moreover, when making emotional and nuanced judgements to meet what a client or employer needs, AI has a long way to go — humans are very much necessary.

If fear paints a bleak picture, history makes it equally effortless to paint an entirely different scenario where progress leads to opportunity, solutions, and a better quality of life for more people: a future where AI augments, not annihilates, our lives.

We do not need to compete with AI, but we can collaborate. After all, we cannot prevent progress, but we can prevent ourselves from progressing.