The HBS Presentation That Shook My Optimism

"The real problem of humanity is that we have Paleolithic emotions, medieval institutions and godlike technology." —E.O. Wilson

Last weekend at a Harvard Business School reunion, I attended a presentation by Professor Shikhar Ghosh on the long-term implications of an AI-powered world.

You probably know that I am a very optimistic person. However, I walked out of Professor Ghosh's session rather shaken.

As I met up with friends and classmates afterward who had attended the same lecture, I learned that others had had the same reaction as I did. One said he was "terrified" at the outlook for AI, and others agreed.

Until now, I have generally been a fan of AI. It makes my every day life easier, more creative and efficient. There are many positive aspects of AI and its potential benefits for society.

But Professor Ghosh also addressed several troubling issues. AI's capabilities are increasing at an exponential rate. As competing companies (OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft, to name a few) invest billions in computing power, each company is forced by competitive pressures and shareholder expectations to race ahead, releasing updates at a rapid pace. In other words, he warned, they are being trapped into ignoring—or minimizing—what could go wrong.

Even experts don't understand exactly how AI does what it does. It's embedded in our phones, our cars, our social media, our buildings, our TVs, our financial institutions, and more. It's everywhere, and it's evolving fast.

Many things could go wrong: misinformation, loss of jobs, autonomous weapons systems, economic disruption, inequality, and the concentration of power in the hands of a few.

Professor Ghosh warned that things are moving so quickly, we are reaching a period of transformation so radical that we literally cannot yet comprehend what it will be like.

My message for you is not to be scared. I'm still an optimist at heart.

My message is to be wary and stay involved. Think carefully about where AI can best and most safely be deployed in your organization.

If you're interested in hearing some of Professor Ghosh's thoughts, please let me know, and I will send you links to recent interviews with him.

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