(Image by IMDb, 2013)
Recently, in the UK, an open letter was signed by more than 1300 experts saying AI is “a force for good, not a threat to humanity”.
What this a response to something?
Tech leaders, including including Elon Musk, who recently launched an AI business, signed a letter calling for a “pause” in developing powerful systems. They argued that super-intelligent AI posed an “existential threat to humanity”.
President Biden in the USA called for a Meeting on Artificial Intelligence with tech giants. But who would have thought that the most resistance to AI is actually coming from the movie industry?
Read on to find out more about recent discussions.
With Hollywood pretty much shut down indefinitely due to strikes by the actors' union, SAG-AFTRA, and the Writers Guild of America, even well-known actors like George Clooney has weighed in. He told CNN that "This is an inflection point in our industry". After the writers went on strike, Christopher Nolan told The Hollywood Reporter that "the business models don't work right now". And studio head Jeff Green said: "Things are changing quickly. Very soon this whole structure we all love so much will be gone". The BBC wrote a piece on it; CNN keeps reporting about it.
But it’s a ten year old movie (The Congress) starring Robin Wright that, at the time was little know, is now stirring up things.
BTW, the studio head Jeff Green is a fictitious character in this movie predicting the crisis in the industry because of the use of artificial intelligence. In the movie, he asks star Robin Wright to sign away the AI rights to her own image.
This loss of control, especially one’s images and identity is at the heart of the the movie union’s contract negotiation over AI use, because it impacts on the writer’s work but also removes actors’ ability to influence how their own images and identities are used.
So, it’s very personal.
And, it’s spooking people of what else AI can duplicate or do behind our backs. And that’s why there’s more heat on the topic again these days, too.
The Good vs Bad
However, we can see the situation in a more positive light, while still supporting a need for rules around AI. It’s not the AI tech world that’s promoting this, but a range of backgrounds, academia, public bodies, and think tanks. Those in the medical world tout nothing but good outcomes from early detection of serious illness to the testing of new drugs.
There are even green applications in agricultural uses of the tech, from robots that use artificial intelligence to pollinate plants to those that identify weeds and spray or zap them with lasers, rather than having whole crops sprayed with weed killer.
In aviation, there are gazillion opportunities from saving resources (energy), to safety (especially apron), reduction in emissions (optimizing power plants, routes while in the air), as laid out in my latest book.
So what’s the hubbub (again)?
Well, there’s ChatGPT, which seems very ‘smart’, but has also been called as smart as as a quick 12-year old with an encyclopedia. Lots of erroneous things come out, and nobody is validating it. It’s pretty scary if you were to use it for medical advice.
Then there are reports that keep coming out saying that it’s predicted that the equivalent of up to 300 to 500 million jobs could be automated, and some companies have already said they will pause hiring in some roles as a result of AI.
That last part leads me to believe that there is a lack of understanding of how AI impacts business and economies overall. It’s not as simple as saying that automation will simply reduce the number of employable people, it’s that is changes the composition of (new) jobs, roles, and resource requirements. And no matter what, humans need to be on the loop and are required to set goals in AI, because it is a misunderstanding to believe AI would set its own goal and purpose for existence.
Who sets the initial purpose?
Also, who’s handling catastrophes, unseen events, changes in our needs? AI?
Besides, for those that have adopted AI, they’ve seen incredible increases in productivity allowing them to accelerate their work and start new projects, not to get rid of people. There’s a shortage of people to support new growth related to AI.
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Forward
Back to the UK, the experts also argued that the UK can help lead the way in setting professional and technical standards in AI roles, supported by a robust code of conduct, international collaboration and fully resourced regulation.
It’s an ambitious but good goal as countries need to become bywords for high-quality, ethical and inclusive AI.
All we are saying that it is increasingly getting important understand the full capabilities and threats associated with abuses of AI, rather than pure restriction of the use of AI. And that is a road untraveled, so there is a lot of ambiguity around it.
I am fully aware of the biases that AI can lead to, and it can also undermine diversity. In many cases AI mimics not only human thinking but also attitudes and behavior.
And the origin of that is human. So as humans self-correct, so can they semi self-correct AI.
Wishing you all a wonderful day, and greetings from Montréal.
Ricardo
Montreal, Tuesday, 24 July 2023
Feel free to contact me for questions, comments, or a chat:
ricardo(at)pomonaadvisors(dot)com
my general email has changed to: info(at)ricardopilon(dot)com