Is Fear Of AI Taking Over Real or Overblown?

AI will destroy the world as we know it, and from the ashes will rise a new world like a phoenix. Fear of AI is real in the minds of many, for others, it is the beginning of a new era in terms of the world we live in.

The last time something like this happened was during the Industrial Revolution. The fear was the same back then, about how the machines will replace us, but we survived and bore witness to years of growth and development. More recently the internet did something similar.

Internet in the early days was thought to be a fad and unnecessary by some, a distraction from more fruitful pursuits, but we know what happened.

With AI we are at the start of something similar but at 10 times the force. AI has the potential to make our lives better in many ways.

Some can argue that the fear of AI is not unfounded. The naysayers include the likes of Elon Musk. The fear is mostly around the loss of jobs, but I think of it no different than the fear of machines during the industrial revolution, or computers in the late 90s. A tool is only as good or as dangerous as the person who wields it, it is the same for AI.

AI can play a major role in levelling the playing field, especially for content creators like me who are short on manpower and time in working on my ideas.

But this blog is about a greater role AI can play in this world, the positive aspects, away from this overblown, Fear Of AI.

High Efficiency & Productivity

Over centuries, humans have developed certain skills and systems, some of which are necessary but redundant. Such tasks do not enhance your skills in any way but still need to be done, tasks with fixed input and output, tasks that can be easily transitioned to AI, with a switch over to humans only if an anomaly occurs.

A good example of such replacement is call centres. The call centres have a defined script and a repository of issues and fixes, AI can be used to use the same and deal with these repetitive tasks more efficiently. Another example is self-driving cars, which can easily replace the need for humans behind the wheel, and help reduce traffic congestion once fully realized.

As a digital writer and a brand builder, AI has helped my productivity as a solopreneur. I am a one-man team, AI is an equalizer for me to compete in this market. As a writer, AI has helped me in the whole process of creativity to publishing, about which I wrote in detail in my article about Ethicality in the use of AI for blogging.

Solving global problems

At this point, the world is fighting against issues not restricted to just a specific region, but the world as a whole.

Climate Change is a big issue right now, and a solution for it needs to be objective with no emotional or political motivations driving the results. AI can play a major role in designing a solution that can be equitable to all. AI is already being used to develop new solar panels that are more efficient and affordable and to create new crop varieties that are more resistant to drought and pests.

Improving health and well-being

AI can play an important role in the health sector. There is a shortage of doctors in most countries, and doctors and other health professionals are an essential part of the everchanging puzzle of healthcare. We have an abundance of research and knowledge but insufficient people to understand and implement them. All this information can be used to train an AI model which can then do required research to enhance already available information. These models can be used to develop new diagnostic tools and treatments for diseases and provide personalized healthcare for each individual.

For example, AI is already being used to develop new software that can analyze medical images and detect cancer cells more accurately than human doctors and at a faster rate. This can ease the load on the system, allowing human doctors to concentrate on areas where the presence of a real person is essential.

With sufficient enhancement in AI, we can cut down time for the development of vaccines in case a pandemic like COVID-19 rears its head again.

Creating New Jobs

AI is not going to eliminate jobs as feared. If planned correctly, it can create new jobs and opportunities in the space of software development, data science, and machine learning. It’s just that everyone needs to let go of the fear of AI and instead embrace it. In my line of work, AI has helped quite a bit in improving productivity. The time taken to draft emails, create a sales pitch, creating images to support my content has been cut down by half.

AI can also push people to pursue their creative side and push them towards monetization of their creative skills. AI ensures some one new to the space need not spend too much to build up a whole team. This would encourage more solopreneurs like me to come to fore front. More businesses do mean more money in the market, and increased consumer purchase power, which would ensure the growth of more industries.

The Internet is littered with up-and-coming AI-based agencies that have embraced the strength of AI instead of having a fear of AI.

Conclusion

AI has the potential to make the world a better place in many ways. It’s not something to be feared. It’s something to be embraced.

AI and other technologies can be an essential building block for a new society along the lines of a resource-based economy from the Venus Project(read the linked story below), making the world a much better place to live.

So let’s use AI as the tool for a better world, and not miss out on one of the biggest developments in the field of technology since the internet.

AI is going to change the way we live in times to come. From all home appliances to software all would have some form of AI. So instead of fearing it, embrace it.

If you want to know more about AI and its impacts do let me know in the comments section about what aspect of AI you want me to cover. Thanks for reading, if the content was helpful do consider subscribing for my future posts.

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Catch you next time.