Nowadays, we typically begin our day with at least one news article about how Artificial Intelligence (AI) has infiltrated yet another aspect of our lives. No wonder quite a few are questioning if there will be anything left for us to do after a few years.
Consider this situation. We no longer need to think since our devices do it for us. We don’t need to recall anything because our gadgets do it. We hardly need to communicate with one another because our technology can do it. So, what are we left to do?
We are already bingeing on food and OTT shows, and there will likely be many more of these goods to consume mindlessly. Therefore, I guess the little time we have left will be spent learning how to programme fresh commands for the robot just waiting to process our orders.
One irony is that, as diverse as we are, we are all growing increasingly similar. We use the same devices, apps, and social media platforms and receive the same opinions and replies so much for individualism. The “I” that represents our uniqueness has been replaced with the “AI”!
This dramatisation around AI reminds me of a famous Japanese children’s cartoon series, where a “cat-robot” has all the equipment to help solve the problems of an 11-year-old boy who is presented as naive and lazy. We observe this youngster getting into difficulty and giving up on himself most of the time, not even pausing to consider a solution to sort out his problems. It is because, deep down, he knows that his robot companion will keep dishing out gadgets to solve his problems and make his life easier.
Thus, while learning to operate yet another gadget and installing software that promises to make our lives easier, let us take a moment to think about these rapidly evolving times.
While we ought to acknowledge the enormous importance of science and technology in our lives, one must remember that AI denotes ‘ARTIFICIAL’ Intelligence.
In that sense, it cannot and should not exceed human intelligence. We should never stifle our creative thoughts and ensure that every valuable minute AI affords us is spent wisely and productively.
Technology should ENABLE, not OVERPOWER.
It is important to remember that one of science’s greatest mysteries, the human brain, still exists within us and can uncover a myriad of wonders if used productively.
Finally, while we say, “Hail GenAI and Automation”, we must not forget the finest of all — the Human Brain!
