The very concept of Artificial Intelligence itself is an outworldly thing. Autonomous Vehicles, Nigh-sentient artificial personalities, everyday facial recognition, the reality of technology being used it everyday situations, all of this sounds like a millennial’s out-of-reach fantasy of the future. But it’s no longer a thing of our predictions of the far future, it’s a part of today’s reality. At least in the form of facial recognition and daily technology use.
Watching the PBS documentary has made me think about the usage of AI in the present day. I honestly cannot see how most mass systems will implement artificial intelligence in ways that will benefit society. Watching the beginning of the doc where everyone in China was using facial recognition and smartphones had me seeing just how much we all use technology in today’s age. But it also has me asking important questions.
How do people who struggle with using technological systems maneuver this kind of society? This doc makes it seem that China is so much more technologically advanced than majority of the world. But my questions applies to the rest of the world just as much as it does to China.
The idea of law enforcement using AI to enact survelliance is a genuine concern of people. The use of AI to publicly shame and even fine people for minor “offenses” such as jaywalking, accidentally dropping something on the ground, or any other minor offense is an inhumane one. This would never be done to catch police committing violence against a citizen. They would never do this to protect victims of violence and harassment, or to protect against discrimination, but they would definitely do this for something as miniscule as jaywalking.
On the flipside, there are genuine positives to AI. Having the algorithm automatically organize itself for someone’s personal feed frees them of the need to do it themself. Saving personal legal records so they don’t get lost is something that Ai can do. Saving pictures, memories, creative content, documents, and other information is a good thing AI can do. If digital technicians were to focus on these needs over automated vehicles and online surveillance then I would have more confidence in the future of Artificial Intelligence.
Honestly, I look at the 2016 Facebook election experiment, the genuine investment in autonomous driving vehicles, and the mass surveillance and information stealing from people online, and I have severe concerns about how artificial intelligence will be used in destructive ways. When Facebook enacted an experiment to encourage people to go out and vote they showed just how much influence they have on the public. But, since Facebook is a place where misinformation flourishes at a high frequency, this just paints a picture of just how voters were influenced to vote. I can easily guess who 99% of Facebook voters voted for, the policies they supported, and the ethics they cared about. None of them are good.
Real people cannot and should be replaced by artificial personalities. When I watched the section where the truck drivers were worried about not getting paid, it shows just how bad of an idea autonomous driving is. Why would an AI not become a certified killer?
