ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Dear reader, 

I have been wanting to talk about Artificial Intelligence (AI) for a while now, but I have never found the right moment to do so, at least, not until now. That’s why, while we are arriving to the end of this subject, I would like to take a moment and share my humble opinion on this thought-provoking topic, that seems to be, nowadays, in everybody’s mind.

In the past few decades, technology has developed exponentially in many unimaginable way. Its growth has effected, directly or indirectly, almost every aspect of our current society, transforming not only the way we communicate with each other, but also how we see the world that surround us. As always, where big change goes, controversy comes with it, and this situation hasn’t been the exception. First was the Facebook privacy problems back in 2010, then the rise of death causes by selfies in 2016, and now is Artificial Intelligence’s turn.

Although the term of AI has been in use for many years, back then, it was commonly employed while talking about the distant future or a sci-fi story. For better or for worst, this situation has changed drastically when Chat GTP was born, back in November 2022. Since then, the use of AI in our everyday life has become normalized in a bizarre way. Despite the fact that the debate of whether we should use AI or not stills up in the air, it’s now common to employ an AI for many aspects that involves our daily lives. However, I’m not here to talk about its story, because I’m quite sure that all you readers are already familiar with the main chronicle here. Instead, I would like to talk a bit of my vision on this topic. 

I will not lie. I wasn’t a fan back when all blew up, and neither am I now. Notwithstanding, I have to admit that my vision has changed a little bit (just a little bit) while taking this subject. Let me explain. Since the beginning, I have been aware that the problem has not been the AI itself, but the people who have used it and his intentions with it. For all that, I don't have much faith either in human beings or in their “values”. There always have been bad people, and they will continue to exist in the future. To make the long story short, it’s not that I don’t trust the AI, it’s that I don’t trust the man to do a good thing with it.

I am well aware that Artificial Intelligence can bring a lot of good things, like helping you plan your day or to create new materials and ideas. Despite this, it can have major consequences, specially if we are talking about the educational field or the Social Media. Some of them we can already see it, like students doing their entire project with Chat GTP, or more extremely, copy the voice or the face of a person, in order to use it to manipulate its social image. I am conscious that this is not a black and white issue, that too many factors intervene in this controversy. Nevertheless, I know that AI can be a very powerful weapon, and I can’t help but worry that, in the wrong hands, it will make us regret creating it in the first place. 

Returning to the main point, I am not lying when I say that I didn’t use any AI before taking this subject. In fact, the first time I use one was while creating a picture of a pink elephant with Ideogram for one of our half-groups classes. It’s kinda ironic and funny, if you ask me. Moreover, I continued to practice how to work with AI tools during the creation of other subject activities, like the scratch project or the creation of this blog’s background picture. But even these innovative projects haven’t changed my mind when it comes to AI. 

As I mentioned in previous entries, I love technology, specially when robotics are involved in it. I really enjoy working with digital tools, because it can help us improve, not only our knowledge, but also the value of our work. Nonetheless, everything has its limitations and its rules. Although I know for first hand that mixing technology with education can lead to a very wealthy learning, I am also aware that if we use them in the wrong way, it may lead to catastrophic consequences. I’m not saying that I am against AI nor that I won’t use it any more, because it ain’t true. My actions won’t change the fact that, for better or for worst, AI is here to stay. And the only thing that remains for us to decide is whether we use with the responsibility that comes with it. Because remember, the dangerous thing here is not the Artificial Intelligence itself, but the hands that are behind it.

What is your opinion on this topic? Do you agree or disagree with me? Let me know down below! This has been quite an interesting entry to write. I hope you enjoyed!

See you soon,

Núria Brusi

PD: Here I leave you one picture made with ideogram (https://ideogram.ai/).

Fig. 1: Cinematic picture created with Ideogram, based in the phrase: "Remember, the dangerous thing

here is not the Artificial Intelligence itself, but the hands that are behind it".