Asking for a friend... what is artificial intelligence?

Welcome!

In this instalment of Let’s Talk About Tech, we break down the buzz of AI. We drill down on why it’s so important for us - as inevitable consumers and contributors - to build consciousness around this technology and its potentially huge implications.

Whether you’re sitting with a coffee or scrolling on the subway, we’ll keep it short and strong to spark important ongoing conversations about our stimulating world of tech!

Asking for a friend… what exactly is artificial intelligence?

If you had a dollar for every time you’ve heard “AI” dropped in conversation, you’d be loaded. But what does it actually mean?

When someone says artificial intelligence (AI), they’re talking about computer systems that can perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as recognising speech, making decisions or understanding natural language.

These systems use algorithms and data to learn and improve their performance over time.

Okay, but what’s so good about it?

With new AI models and tools rolling out what feels like every week at this point, there are so many new possibilities for creating content and coming up with new ideas. From an original academic essay to the script and screenplay of a brand new season of Friends - you name it, AI can (probably) create it.

There are literally hundreds of applications that know how to generate text, image audio, video and even 3D renders at your request. Here are just a few:

These tools take efficiency and productivity to a whole new level by turning around high volumes of content quick-smart. And people without specialised skills can create almost anything that once required a background in areas like coding and graphic design.

Even more impressive is the way AI is looking like it will revolutionise healthcare. Specialised tools are being used to detect illnesses such as prostate cancer and even predict people’s likelihood of getting cancer in the future.

But this class of crazy technology isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. Specialists in AI ethics say that artificial intelligence “offers us bedazzling gifts but could also hack the foundations of our civilisation.”

Why should I be concerned?

A survey conducted last year found that almost half of 730+ surveyed AI academics and researchers thought there was a 10% or greater chance that AI systems would contribute to human extinction, or some other form of disempowerment that is just as severe.

(I felt my soul leave my body after reading that for the first time. I still don’t think I’ve quite recovered.)

In an opinion piece in the New York Times, AI ethics specialists Yuval Harari, Tristan Harris and Aza Raskin drew an honestly gut-wrenching parallel between people’s trust in the hands of aeroplane engineers and AI experts:

If you wouldn’t board a plane when half of its engineers say there’s at least a 10% chance the plane will crash and everybody on board will die, then why would we tap into AI systems when half of AI experts say there is at least a 10% chance that doing so will lead to extinction?

(Again, I’m shook.)

What has the experts worried, exactly?

Besides being extremely grim, these survey predictions are pretty bold. We’re literally talking about *extinction* here 🫠

But to understand where they’re coming from, here are some of the biggest risks that AI Trust & Safety experts are talking about right now:

• A potentially catastrophic arm’s race between tech companies who are desperate to be the first to capture users’ attention with the best AI offerings;

• Gradual dependence on the synthetic relationships we form with chatbots and other conversational AI models; and

• Extreme difficulty telling fact from fiction with AI tools able to generate convincing and often divisive misinformation.

The consensus seems to be that the development of AI is accelerating so quickly that no one, including regulators or the experts themselves, can keep up.

They’re worried that risks that they foresee today will become inevitable and uncontrollable catastrophes tomorrow.

We’ll be taking a closer look at some of these topics in future newsletters, so make sure you stay tuned for more every fortnight.

Looking for something other than your #FYP to keep you informed?

(That’s ‘for you page’, for the boomers out there.)

Well, if you thought the stuff we covered in this newsletter was interesting - maybe even a bit daunting - and you’re in the mood to dive a little deeper, here are some of the things we’ve recently watched, read and listened to, and curated just for you:

Finally, some food for thought…

Thanks for talking about tech with us - we hope this helped wrap your head around what the heck that thing called AI actually is.

All in all, it’s an exciting new class of technology but experts reckon it’s moving WAY. TOO. QUICKLY.

Stay tuned for the latest news, reviews and more in next fortnight’s newsletter. And why not tell your friends about us? We’re sure they’d love to be in the loop.