Reality Check on Artificial Intelligence
It’s become, for the most part, inescapable. A day hardly goes by when somewhere in either the print or digital media a newly introduced and innovative use for artificial intelligence (AI) is not claiming its place in the technology food chain. Medicine, energy, finance, education, and security are only some of the applications and industries that have adopted AI programs to complement if not entirely replace the involvement of human beings. And tech-oriented nations throughout the world – including, of course, the Start Up Nation, Israel – are competing to see who can go the farthest the fastest.
Am I the only one concerned by all this and more than a little troubled that we very well may be, as Barry McGuire sang so long ago, on the Eve of Destruction?
Throughout the last twenty or thirty years, we have been warned of the dangers to our bodies inherent in the ingestion of artificial ingredients, colors, flavors, and whatnot. Veganism is rapidly becoming the “in thing”, and health food stores and “green” supermarkets have for some time become commonplace among the more familiar food and grocery outlets. Yet, we are not in the least hesitant about entrusting our minds and souls – the creative, inventive, innovative, and empathetic abilities that define who we are – to algorithms and coding sequences. And making the matter even more absurd is that there are programs that have been developed for teachers, security officers, and professional investigators designed to detect the use of artificial intelligence. Artificial watchdogs, in other words, policing artificial intelligence.
Which is why I did not know whether to laugh or cry after reading an Israeli journalist’s recent admission that the upbringing he received and the personal manners he was taught from his parents has him say “Thank you” to the AI whiz ChatGPT for services and assistance that were rendered. Why an experienced journalist and talented writer would seek help from an inanimate conglomeration of hardware of software in and of itself makes little sense. Indeed, this is more than indicative of how, within a relatively short period of time, AI has become ingrained into our day-to-day lives.
Of greater concern is that far and few between are to be found warnings about allowing AI to grow without technological constraints or legislated limitations. The benefits of the precision that AI is capable of achieving does not come without a steep cost. Indeed, when examined carefully and objectively, the conclusion that AI provides more disadvantages than advantages becomes unavoidable. If left to advance unfettered or unchecked, it is only a matter of time that AI will create a society that was once the exclusive domain of science fiction masters such as Isaac Asimov.
We cannot, in the first place, deny that civilization as we know it today is being inundated if not actually threatened by the extraordinarily rapid development of the enhanced capabilities of AI-infused robotics. Objective studies and analyses are reaching the conclusion that it won’t be too long before AI will enable the non-human performance of tasks in ways that far exceed human capability. The digitalized operation of vehicles, surgery and diagnostics, and creative-related processes such as writing, architecture, and music are most certainly on the agenda. That we have freed from the bottle a benevolent genie cannot be taken for granted. Those in the know – Bill Gates and Elon Musk, for example – have not been hesitant to express their concerns that it won’t be long before humanity loses control over AI-controlled processes and procedures, frighteningly pointing out that these systems are not always in synch with human safety and values.
But more importantly, perhaps, as AI becomes increasingly integrated into even the most mundane of activities, there will be a similarly increasing reduction in the need for human interaction. Unchecked, AI will, within a very short time, become regarded as something indispensable in both the white- and blue-collar workforce. It is, needless to say, in the commercial interest of those developing and marketing AI systems and processes to make human beings as reliant on these innovations as possible with little regard for the inevitable consequences. And make no mistake – even scant contact, communication and cooperation with family, friends, neighbors, colleagues, and, yes, even strangers are essential for both our physical and mental wellbeing.
And what, it is fair to ask, is the Jewish perspective with regard to artificial intelligence. That it is slowly but steadily entering into the study halls of yeshivas is clear, as the ability to access with a click or two scant resources and literature and make ancient languages understandable are aids that cannot be overstated. What, though, will happen when AI demonstrates the ability to answer those questions that proverbially cross the rabbi’s eyes? What will replace the sensitivity that flesh-and-blood rabbis invariably must consider when approached with spiritual traumas and dilemmas? Will HaRav ChatGPT, I suspect, will come up empty.
Our future, in other words, must not be decided by what is considered “sexy” or state-of-the-art. Corporations and governments must work together to prevent a chaotic reality that becomes both uncontrollable and untenable. An author, posting on a social media platform said it best: “I want AI to do my laundry and dishes so that I can do art and writing, not for AI to do my art and writing so that I can do my laundry and dishes.”
Oh, and just to set the record straight, the earlier mentioned journalist is not the only one who expresses appreciation to inanimate bytes, arguments, and arrays. Whenever Waze’s Voice Guidance System cheerfully informs me that “You have reached your destination” I inevitably mutter a whispered note of gratitude to Amy.
Well, not actually to Amy. No, my thanks are addressed to the innovators and software engineers that provided me, someone with a poor sense of direction, an indispensable resource. Without Waze’s help I would probably still be searching for the Jerusalem wedding hall in which my daughter got married four months ago. And my friend who was sitting shiva in some off-the-beaten-track street in Ramat Gan would have received my words of comfort via a WhatsApp message.
But restraints are solely called for. ChatGPT, Waze, and all the other AI intrusions are slowly eroding the ecosystem that humans are part of. Sooner or later this will be result in harmful levels of unemployment, depression, and insecurity. All those who are unabashed cheerleaders for the ongoing enhancements to AI should take a step back and consider just what they are encouraging.
Nonetheless, dinosaurs like myself find old habits hard to break, so we’ll continue to say “please” and “thank you” as taught by our parents and teachers. Even to ChatGPT and Amy.
