Introduction

It is no doubt that Artificial Intelligence (AI) has helped human society grow as a whole. Especially within the last decade, we had been able to break through many frontiers previously thought impossible. Our decisions today will help shape the future, not forgetting the pace to which we are innovating and creating better algorithms. While we can visualize what the AI sees, controlling or even understanding why the AI chooses certain actions is not within our abilities. It is almost like a blind dive into our future, we can’t say for sure that our decisions are for the better. Nonetheless, having a choice is better than none.

Will AI take over humans?

While it is true that we’ve seen AI advance at an unprecedented pace, and had already beaten humans in certain aspects, I believe that AI would not play the leading role in the future of human civilization. Let’s not forget that algorithms were based off nature, with neural networks being our try at imitating how our own neurons work in the brain. With millions of years of evolution, I do not think that AI has the capabilities of out-beating the work of nature. Not to forget that our natural resources are finite. AI aside, we might even see one day that we might run out of the very materials that are needed to build the computers and made all these possible.

What is in store for us?

Having said that, while we might not see a robot apocalypse anytime soon, AI does have implications with our present society. We might not realize this but just by browsing the internet, many of us are being constantly monitored by AI, taking note of every decisions that we make. Through these, they provide us with suggestions that might be to our liking. To an extend, this will definitely influence our decision making. If we are constantly fed with things that we find pleasant, there are a lot of new choices that we might not be able to make. Not considering that most AI are built for profit, with advertisers influencing what the user gets to see. We might already be seeing a whole new generation of how people go about with their shopping.

Double edged sword

The weapon is not evil, it is he who wields it. Seeing that AI is capable of influencing the society, should we choose to influence how it should be used? To some extent, it really depends on what we consider as “good”. At the end of the day, I think having said that we did decide on the implications of this technology is better than saying humanity did nothing at all and let fate decide. With so many species of animals around the world, who is to dictate that humans are the most efficient at walking? I believe AI to be a whole new species whereby we can learn of even better ways of doing work that is beneficial to humans and integrate it within our lives.

Human’s new tool

Personally, I feel that from the time humans learn to make tools, there has always been a moral debate on whether the invention was for the better. I feel AI is just another stepping stone and we should work hand in hand. There are many things that we still do better than AI but there are places to which we can learn from. AI might be efficient in various fields that requires repetitive and mundane tasks or even ones which needs enormous calculation. In such fields should I feel that AI can come in to supplement and aid humans.

Commercial applications

My personal standpoint is that while AI is able to help out in certain sectors, there are various places where we can dial down on the use of AI. For example in e-commerce, there isn’t much of a need for AI to say that the user might like this. While it does help provide some form of help in decision making, more often than not, it just causes consumers to spend more money and time scrolling through endless suggestions. While businesses needs to survive, morally, such suggestions only results in high consumption of technology which itself has it’s own sets of issues and problems. I believe the decisions are to be from the consumers’ end on whether they choose to consume such knowledge. Each their own views, giving consumers a choice ensures that consent is given.

Conclusion

By providing consumers with the choice, we can ensure that everyone is agreeable on how they make use of the technology. It is indeed exciting and trilling to be living in this age where we can see a shift in society. How we choose to open this new chapter definitely needs serious considerations of various individuals and mutual understanding of the path we decide to take. That said, it is definitely evident that AI will help shape the future of society.