The Problems with AI

I have a big problem with AI.

In the past year, we’ve seen a surge in AI companies trying to stand out and “revolutionize” every industry, from adding AI chatbots to take over customer service roles to image generation meant to remove the need for designers.

But AI isn’t ready for that yet.

AI is in its extremely early stages, a stage where it still has countless issues, and it is abundantly easy to tell when AI has created a block of text or created an image.

So why are we so quickly trying to get rid of the jobs of creators?

In the past few years, we have seen Microsoft fire over a dozen employees managing MSN News in favor of an AI curator.

Sports Illustrated was also recently accused of posting AI-generated content but masking it through fake authors and writers, which resulted in their CEO being sacked only a few weeks later.

Some can say that only a token few are doing it, and it's not a problem yet, but this is just the tip of the iceberg.

Thousands of companies are looking at how AI can help “improve” workflow, with even more forcing it in because investors are clearly more attracted to companies claiming to use AI than those not.

There is a clear financial incentive to build out AI.

But I don’t think that’s the right path, yet.

I firmly believe that AI isn’t ready to take over jobs, but that doesn’t mean it can’t help. What AI is really good at is looking at patterns, something Forbes discusses in their article “How Creators Can Use AI To Be More Efficient And Still Be Creative.”

Geoffrey Johnston, Product Director at Streamable, discusses how “[…]AI helps repurpose and reformat [creators] content for other formats like short-form video, which helps expand their reach across multiple platforms and reach more key audiences.”

Here, he discusses how AI can be a tool, not the end-all answer to every industry.

He goes on to say, “The way we're thinking about this is more a question of ‘how to use AI to stream content more efficiently without losing your unique voice.’

Preserving the creator's unique voice is AI's greatest challenge."

What we should be investing in more is how AI can assist an industry and continue to build up existing and new creators’ voices so that they can excel and achieve even bigger heights.

There’s a reason everyone is worrying about what AI will do when it " takes over.” All we’ve seen so far is how it will steal jobs and say crazy things if you break it enough. Why is that the first impression we are giving people?

AI needs a reset.

We need to start over and show people the joy of what a fascinating new technology can provide for society, similar to how people experienced the Internet for the first time only a few decades ago.

The benefits that AI can provide are absolutely incredible, but we are on the wrong trajectory. I think it is time to take a step back and look at the ways we can and should use AI and stop people worrying about if they will still have a job a year from now.

Bauder, D., & Press, T. A. (2023, November 29). Sports illustrated is accused of publishing articles written by Ai and then attributing them to reporters who don’t exist: “the mistake is trying to hide it.” Fortune. https://fortune.com/2023/11/28/sports-illustrated-ai-written-articles-reporters-who-dont-exist/

Kite-Powell, J. (2023, December 20). How creators can use ai to be more efficient and still be creative. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/jenniferkitepowell/2023/12/19/how-creators-can-use-ai-to-be-more-efficient-and-still-be-creative/?sh=217060d1bcaa

WallStreetZen Editors. (n.d.). Can the mere mention of ai move stock prices in 2023?. Can The Mere Mention of AI Move Stock Prices in 2023? https://www.wallstreetzen.com/blog/ai-mention-moves-stock-prices-2023/