Artificial Intelligence:
A Technology Commonly Misunderstood Yet Essential for our Future
Our world is rapidly changing due to advancements in technology. For centuries, as humans, we have sought to make our lives easier. Technology is one of the reasons our species thrives. However, new technology is often questioned during development and its early use. Artificial intelligence, otherwise known as AI, is the software that allows machines to use and analyze data to spot trends, interact with other machines and humans, and learn from its experience in an automated manner. AI has given us Alexa, Google Home, Siri, chatbots, Google Photos, self-driving cars, Netflix, Facebook, data analysis in financial services, medical and national security fields, a robot named Sophia (who has gained citizenship in Saudi Arabia), and more. The uses of AI are endless.
There are three stages of AI
- ANI (Artificial Narrow Intelligence), is primarily focused on more simple tasks.
- AGI (Artificial General Intelligence), which matches the knowledge of a human and uses problem-solving to focus on several fields. AGI is already in use and is expected to be in full run next year.
- ASI (Artificial Super Intelligence), is where the knowledge of machines surpasses that of even the smartest and most gifted human minds in all fields. ASI is expected to begin to arrive around 2050.
The concerns AI has raised
One of the most common concerns of Artificial Intelligence is that it will destroy jobs and the economy. In some cases, AI will eliminate jobs, but mostly those that are monotonous and do not truly leverage a human’s ability. As new technology and as an entirely new industry, AI will actually create more jobs than it eliminates. A statistic by several AI analysts found that
“In 2020, AI becomes a positive net job motivator, creating 2.3 million jobs while only eliminating 1.8 million jobs” (Poitevin 2).
While this still seems like a big number of lost jobs, AI makes our lives more efficient, can complete tasks more quickly, and make our lives much simpler. Humans will start to get to work that matters and be more productive. AI will deal with boring tasks and those that are too challenging for humans as well. Additionally, AI will help create thousands of new businesses, help drive new inventions, and identify new cures. An article from Forbes stated: “The unparalleled combination of human and machine will become the new normal in the workforce of the future” (Forbes 1).
The second most common misconception is that AI will deliver super-intelligent robots that will want to take over the world or end the human race (e.g., Terminator). Some believe everything they see in movies. While some movies make useful predictions and highlight some issues where things could go wrong, society should regulate and responsibly monitor AI. Jason Matheny, director of the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity, stated: “We’re much less worried about… Terminator and Skynet scenarios than we are of… just really badly engineered systems that are vulnerable to either error or malicious attack from outside” (Tadjdeh 10). Humans are always more of a threat than technology. Many also worry that if an enemy gets a hold of this technology it can cause great harm.
The most related example of regulation is nuclear weapons. During the cold war, two nuclear powers with opposite ideologies faced off but realized that nuclear war would only deliver widespread destruction. So here we are, flawed humans, recognizing that mutually assured destruction is utterly ridiculous. We cannot assume that AI will want to end humanity. Artificial Intelligence was created by humans, for humans. Humans are in control. Humans are the ones that make the decisions. We make the regulations needed and monitor what is required.
The Uses of Artificial Intelligence are Boundless
The reason AI is so important is that it can be applied to literally everything. Once we develop AI enough to reach the level of ASI in about 30 years, anything is possible. Finding a planet and developing new technology will be done much more rapidly. Cures for cancer and other illnesses will be finally solved. What seemed impossible years ago will become a reality. Our society will be completely changed and transformed for the better.
“Life in the following thirty years will likely become almost alien to today’s observer, similar to how we view life in the 1940s and 1950s” (Unknown 1).
In terms of business, “AI enables businesses to make more accurate decisions via predictions, classifications, and clustering. AI accomplishes these tasks by finding patterns within complex, unstructured data such as image, audio, and documents, or within structured historical data. Therefore, AI cannot only accomplish repetitive, tedious and low-skilled tasks but also read thousands of legal contracts in minutes and extract all the useful information out of them faster and with fewer errors than lawyers” (Alaybeyi 7).
This skill of analyzing tons of data in milliseconds will be crucial in the future. It is predicted that data from every business and details from the internet by 2025 is going to be ten times that which we have today (around 238 zettabytes which are equal to one sextillion bytes worth of data). With this amount of data, AI is our only option to keep our economy running. It is not possible for humans to handle this volume, velocity, or variety of data.
It is also estimated that “Through 2020, employers with data- and AI-for-good programs will have 20% higher retention and 50% faster data and analytic job-fill rates” (Poitevin 2). With humans and AI, working side by side in a job environment, businesses will grow exponentially and create more competition and advancement with other businesses ultimately growing the economy.
In terms of health, AI will be extremely beneficial. “AI will have a profound impact on low-income communities via vastly improved oversight of resources like food and water, education and healthcare accessibility, and dissemination of social services” (Unknown 1).
For surgeries in hospitals, AI will be able to be much more precise and have little error when performing surgery. Nanobots can use AI and get inside the body to run tests and detect any illnesses, disease, or cancer much faster than a doctor can. People will be better diagnosed as a result.
AI can also help around the house or the elderly. In nursing homes or any home, there can be companion robots who provide help at any time.
Homes will also be improved with better security and better power usage.
With the analysis of tons of data and patterns of wildlife and plant species, AI can help control invasive species or find ways to control pollution and preserve our planet.
With every new and revolutionary invention, people say it will be too dangerous or too much of a risk. However, without taking risks, we do not advance as a society.
The automobile was one such risk, which has helped transform our society for the better. Could you imagine life without cars today or all the methods of transportation that evolved since then? If we let the fear of the unknown drive decision making, societies would be at a standstill. The way we grow and develop requires questioning the status quo and taking risks… calculated risks.
We will encounter issues with every new technology. Security will be the primary issue. It will be essential to understanding how a particular algorithm is built, what data it is using, and how it is evolving and learning. We will always need humans to be in control and have the ability to shut AI off. In the end, this technology will impact every single being in a couple of decades. AI is the future. AI will bring us to the world we all dream of. It is already here, and it’s not going anywhere. We need to embrace it, govern it, and responsibly apply it.
Works Cited
Alaybeyi, Saniye. “Debunking Myths and Misconceptions About Artificial
Intelligence.”
Gartner, 18 January 2019: 12. Gartner, 8 March 2019.
Editors, Forbes Technology Council. “14 Ways AI Will Benefit Or Harm Society.” Forbes,
Forbes Magazine, 1 Mar. 2018,
Eldridge, Douglas. “Why the Benefits of Artificial Intelligence Outweigh the Risks.”
CMSWire.com, CMSWire.com, 22 Feb. 2017,
www.cmswire.com/digital-experience/why-the-benefits-of-artificial-intelligence-outweigh-the-risks/.
Poitevin, Helen. “Predicts 2019: AI and the Future of Work.” Gartner, 13 December 2018: 20.
Gartner. 8 March 2019.
Sraders, Anne. “What Is Artificial Intelligence? Examples and News in 2019.” TheStreet,
TheStreet, 3 Jan. 2019, www.thestreet.com/technology/what-is-artificial-intelligence-14822076.
Tadjdeh, Yasmin. “AI: A Tool For Good and Bad.” Air Force Uses AI to Accelerate Pilot
Training, May 2018,
www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/articles/2018/4/30/algorithmic-warfare-ai-a-tool-for-good-and-bad.
Unknown. “A New Dawn.” Artificial-Intelligence,
www.ubs.com/microsites/artificial-intelligence/en/new-dawn.html.
