By Diego Delira
How’s it all going to end? The question that keeps us up at night. The one that makes us think are we heading to a better tomorrow. There are many ways that the world could end. It could be natural, for example, a meteor strike or the sun overheating.
Though I believe the way we’ll go out is, in fact, man-made. I think that humanity will cause its downfall, and it may seem closer than we all think. AI today has complicated codes that designers are unable to explain. Even when two AIs communicate with one another, they change how they communicate to understand each other better, and we as humans are unable to keep up or understand. AI constantly learns while they are functioning. They are rapidly growing, and if AI were to retain information even quicker, what conclusions could they come to.
In today’s world, we see robots replacing many jobs. But what happens when the robot becomes too intelligent? What happens when they believe that humanity is useless or a danger to the earth. AI is a very new concept to many of us and is pretty mind-bending if you ask me. I constantly see how different AI technology could better our world. For example, they could assist the elderly, help with chores, replace jobs, etc. Though is it worth it what happens when AI makes it, so we don’t do anything people don’t go outside don’t work. Could we end up like the humans in Walle? Could we ignore our earth and stay on our couch eating junk food. Unable to move, becoming increasingly obese.
When we are too vulnerable, and the AI continues to control us. We become prisoners in an AI world. The risk of AI is too high and scary. Even so, we see top companies race to the top AI. This is because the cost of an AI “worker” is way less than a human worker. AI is only as bad as we make it. The late Stephen Hawking expresses how AI could solve world poverty, hunger and even stop wars. He even used it to communicate as his systems changed with AI. He could write better and speak as AI would fill words in for him, making it easier to communicate. Even so, Hawking warned us of the negatives coming with AI, that it “could spell the end of the human race.” This is because we as humans are limited by evolution, and we don’t grow as fast. As AI has no limits and could rapidly match or even surpass the human thinking process. Many designers of AI use opaque algorithms that come to conclusions designers are unable to explain. The creation of a super AI could either surpass the limits of humans and provide much help or ultimately end the human race.
In conclusion, many people, including legend Stephen Hawking rely on AI to help them better experience the world, and with the advancement of AI, we could help so many others. Is it worth it? Do you believe that humans are resilient enough to go against machines if we ever need to?
Diego Delira – Latin School of Chicago – DMSF