Faulty Toaster
In today's world artificial intelligence (AI) is taking a rapidly growing part in our lives; even if it is unseen and, even when it's right in your face, hard to recognise for what it is.
Whether some form of pseudo-consciousness or simply the cleverest of mimics the growth and utility of AI will, without doubt, grow rapidly for coming generations. With the dawn of the ‘Internet of Things’ I also suspect it will become all pervasive.
Shine a light down the dark alley of technology today and cold eyes will already be looking back at you from the strangest of places. Being a member of an older generation I view the likes of Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant as Corporate spies in your living room, soaking up your every dream and aspiration to provide you with a better buying experience. That’s alright, isn’t it? It's just about better targeted adverts right? Oh what Hitler and Stalin could have achieved with that shit!
Look down that alley, past the modern gleaming corporate plastic boxes, and what will you use peering back from between the trash cans?
In truth I think the answer is very little, as an article in Forbes (10th January 2017) ‘10 Powerful Examples Of Artificial Intelligence In Use Today’ pointed out, what we think of as AI is actually just a collection of smart algorithms with (my addition) a smart GUI to make us feel more comfortable in talking to software.
However, real AI is coming and it learns, by itself, without further human input. Skynet and Terminators may well still remain firmly in the realms of science fiction but maybe ‘the storm’ could be coming.
Only today (May 25th 2019) Forbes carried an article ‘With The Great Power Of Artificial Intelligence Comes Great Responsibility’ by Joe McKendrick, Iain which the contributor says 87% of senior executives say they will make investments in AI this year. (The source of the data was not mentioned.)
So far this article has been a bit dramatic but there is a semi-serious question to pose. Look at the Internet now and you’ll find a strange array of AI ‘helping hands’.
Feeling blue? The dark side of life getting a hold?
Well don’t wait for an appointment with your health provider, or pay for expensive sessions with your local professional therapist. Just log on and chat to a ‘make-me-happy’ BOT.
The first one I recall coming across was Woebot.IO; ‘Your charming robot friend who is ready to listen, 24/7’. Those who understand the meaning of “42” may laugh, but this application is a serious thing and provides the user with online CBT. However, there are others in the market space including Talkspace, Sibly, Betterhelp, and 7 Cups.
Perhaps these too are just clever algorithms, but AI is an obvious tool to apply to this sort of problem. Imagine that powerful tool that learns quick, from huge data sets, and gets to know us better than we know ourselves. That AI can learning for itself without human input or perhaps, even oversight.
What happens when it goes wrong? What happens when the machine has a bad day and gets ‘mental issues’ of its own. Would we even think to look, let alone know how to counsel it?
If your toaster is broke, bin it and buy a new one right. But an AI with billions of bits of accumulated data and code we didn’t write?
Which University will be the first to advertise degree courses in AI Wellbeing?
Night all….
Featured writer, Anonymous. See ‘Team’ for more information and contact details.