The robots are coming.

(And it's going to affect YOU).

This is a piece about AI. So first of all: yes, I know that robots and AI are different things. Anybody actually knowledgeable about tech or AI or robotics is going to say that. (Some angrily, some mockingly). But from what I can see, most ordinary people don't know what AI actually means in practical terms. They may know what it stands for, or be able to give a vague definition, but they have no conceptualisation of it. To non-experts, AI is a vague notion to do with computers getting better at stuff.

Whereas people get robots. Say 'robot" and most people immediately have a picture in their mind: C3PO, Cylons, Iron Man/Jarvis, or our friend the Terminator. All of these are machines which do human-like things - not just physically, but intellectually. We don't have to give them detailed instructions for every task: they're able to evaluate what happens around them and respond accordingly. They can learn and adapt. (Which is what AI does).

This illustrates my most fundamental point: most people don't understand what "AI" means in practical terms. It's not talked about much in mainstream media. It's not the subject of discussion in the pub or at the match.

And yet AI is going to transform live for humans more profoundly, and far more quickly, than anything that's ever happened to our species. More than the discovery of fire, the creation of the wheel, the use of gunpowder or the arrival of the internet. On a macro level, it's going to completely change everything about how societies work.

But it's not just a social science question for social scientists. On a practical level, this is going to change everything about how we go about our day-to-day lives. It's going to change our jobs and how we do them. It's going to change how we have relationships. It's going to change our homes, our clothes, travel, medicine, entertainment, food... there isn't a single area of day-to-day life that won't be massively affected.

But for all that impact, outside of tech communities and some specific areas of policy-making, nobody's really talking about any of this - at least not in a way that's bringing the majority of people into the conversation.

Want some data to back this up? Well, according to this recent CNBC survey, more than two-thirds of US workers have never used AI in their jobs. And that's people in the workforce - in America. So think how many people globally have never (knowingly) used AI. Equally, the most recent The Pew Research Center study on understanding of AI showed that less than a third of respondents could correctly identify six ways AI is used in everyday life.

(The Ipsos Global View survey on AI tells a slightly different story, suggesting that globally two-thirds of people say they have a good understanding of what AI is: but that "understanding" isn't tested in any way. I'm sure I'd answer that question "yes", even though my actual understanding is pretty limited. And when you ask people "which types of products and services use artificial intelligence", the number falls to 51%... and just 36% in Ireland, for example).

Again, I'd also point to the fact that ordinary people just aren't talking about AI. That's surprising, given its potential impact. When we had a global pandemic, everyone got involved. We all became experts in microbiology; we all had views on vaccines, on lockdowns, on the morality of "flatten the curve" versus "let it rip". (For example: how many Irish people do you know who could name Ireland's Chief Medical Officer during the pandemic? Most, I'd say. How could name Ireland's AI Ambassador, despite her brilliance in her field? Put it this way... I had to look it up!)

AI is infinitely more impactful for humans than the pandemic ever was: but outside of the technical enclaves, nobody's really talking about it.

I think it's time to start.

The funny thing is that I do sort of have an AI qualification. A few years ago I was appointed to the Irish government's AI Skills Steering Group, which produced Ireland's first ever AI Skills report.

When I was brought onto the Steering Group, it wasn't because of my expertise in AI ?? . (Quite the opposite). It was largely by virtue of my role at Europe's most exciting fintech, Revolut: but maybe there was also a hope that as an AI rookie, I might have something to bring to the table.

That something is communication. I've spent my whole career in mass communication: first as a reporter, then as an Editor, and now as a communications professional. A huge part of that role has been taking complex issue and communicating them in a way that non-experts will understand, but will also feel is interesting and significant to them.

So if I had a role on the Steering Group - which, you'll be glad to hear, was led by genuine experts - it was mass communication to humans. It was asking the questions that I thought ordinary people would want answers to when it comes to AI. It was helping to frame the answers in a way that non-experts might understand. And it was trying to make this material relevant.

The latter is the hardest part in any area of mass communication: not so much translating the technical concepts, but addressing the basic unspoken question, "why should I care about this?" People have so much going on in their lives... they really don't see why this is relevant. Plus, I think a lot of them also feel that they're powerless anyway: the things that will happen will be decided far, far away from them. So what I've always tried to do is humanise big questions, or help frame issues in a way that helps people appreciate why they should indeed care, and how exactly these seemingly complex issues are very much relevant to them.

That's why I've started by deliberately using the word "robots" in my headline: because if we want this conversation to be meaningful to all the other AI rookies and ordinary people out there, we need to use language and imagery that is meaningful to them. It may not be scientifically the most precise: but if it gets more people involved in the conversation, it's worth it. (One things experts do quite a lot is use technical terms which are meaningful to them, but are completely opaque to ordinary people: this completely shuts them out of those conversations).

So this is my aim: to start trying to talk about this humanity-changing, life-upside-downing technology in a way that non-specialists will both understand and engage with.

To do that, I'm going to have to go on a journey of self-education: right now I'd say I know about less than 1% of what's happening in AI (and I understand even less of it). But there is an advantage to that: it means I'm looking at all this stuff like an ordinary person going about their life.

I'm going to read up, watch videos, listen to podcasts - and try to use AI as I do it. Along the way, I'm going to start posting about some of the things which I think might be relevant or interesting to non-experts.

I also have the very privileged position in my job of potentially getting access to some of the experts and leaders in the field - and hopefully learning from them. Where I can, I'll try to bring some of that insight to bear too.

I'd be grateful for any pointers to good information sources that anyone has found particularly useful. And of course along the way I'd welcome any comments or thoughts anyone has. (Just remember, though, that mocking people for not knowing stuff is unkind: you can't help not knowing what you don't know. What matters is that you're trying to learn).

The Christmas break is a good time to start that learning, I think: hopefully at some point in the New Year I'll start posting with a fraction more knowledge about some of the really interesting issues that come up.

I have literally no idea where this journey will lead, or what value there is in it to anyone. I think it's an important discussion, though. So I'll finish by posing one AI question which I thought was absolutely fascinating (hat-tip to the AI Breakdown podcast for highlighting this issue):

"What will happen to human relationships when men can have AI-generated girlfriends who are always attentive, thoughtful, understanding and perfect-looking? [I'm saying men/girlfriends just to keep the pronouns simple - it works just as well for any other combination]. Real human relationships involve dealing with people who can be complex, needy, tired, grumpy, jealous... imperfect. And what impact does any change in those relationships have on society - not just relationships, but family structures, bringing up children etc? Will AI partners replace the need for human relationships? Will they create a group of men who can't form relationships with real women? What happens to those men when they can't get the physical companionship that normally accompanies emotional attachment? Will they become lonely? Or angry?"

Think about that for a while. Meanwhile I'll go educate myself a bit more: and then, in the words of the world's best-known AI system, I'll be back.