Why is Everyone Talking About Artificial Intelligence Suddenly and How it Matters to All of Us?

Understanding the Sudden Interest in Artificial Intelligence by Explaining the Impact on Us

Unless you were on another planet and just returned to Earth or you were in a cave, shut off from the world, you wouldn’t have missed the “sudden” explosion in interest around Artificial Intelligence.

Right from serious editorials to comical takes on AI, the news is chock full of content about how AI is the next “big thing” to happen to all of us.

So, what explains this sudden interest in AI and how did it began and where is it headed to next? More importantly, we would also take you through why it matters to all, and we mean “all” as there is no sphere of our lives which is going to be untouched or unaffected by Artificial Intelligence.

Without much ado, let’s take a “deep dive” into the world of AI. To start with, while there was much discussion around AI earlier as well, it is only with the arrival of Generative AI like ChatGPT that has “set the cat among the pigeons”.

For the layperson, ChatGPT is an AI enabled “assistant” that can be used for anything and everything, right from writing college essays to fiction and poetry to more advanced uses like “predicting” the future, by asking it “simple” questions.

What is ChatGPT and Why it is the Topic of “Hot” Discussion and How We Should Try it Once

Now that we’ve touched on the topic of ChatGPT, we will go a bit deeper and this is where the “troubling” aspects of Generative AI come into play.

For instance, ChatGPT can be used for plagiarizing as well as duplicating content on the web, in the same manner in which AI can used to create what are known as “deep fakes” that appear so authentic that it is nearly impossible to distinguish them from the “real” videos.

Worse, misinformation and fake news can be both generated and “spread” wide and far with AI enabled tools, a potential source of concern for all of us.

This is not taking into consideration the humungous impact that AI would have on jobs; with estimates signifying tha1t nearly 400 Million jobs would be “lost” due to AI in the next decade or the next few years.

So, this is where the “rub” is and that AI and especially Generative AI can and will be hugely “disruptive” on all of us.

Indeed, even this article can be written using AI thereby making “us” redundant and irrelevant.

The Positives of AI and Why Generative AI Can Be As or More Transformative Than the Internet

Having said that, it is not like it is the end of the world or that we should also simply “fold-up”. On the contrary, AI is highly “transformative” as can be seen in the whole gamut of uses that it can be put to.

Right from education to healthcare to industry to entertainment, AI and Generative AI can be revolutionary in its application.

Indeed, just walk into any corporate and you would not fail to notice how “smart” virtual assistants are gradually taking over from humans and these AI enabled bots are more “efficient” than their human counterparts.

Moreover, the world of Human Resource Management has been made over due to AI as can be seen in the elimination of “biases” and prejudices” in the recruitment process where AI tools have been enabled to take over the hiring and on boarding.

In addition, using ChatGPT, the “fitment” and the “role matching” are easier as it can “crawl” the entire internet for matches to the available openings and even determine if a particular applicant is the “right fit” for the role.

So, there you are and while there is much to worry about Artificial Intelligence, there is also a lot to cheer.

Technology is Value Neutral and it Depends on How We Deploy and Use it, Regulate it

Ultimately, technology is value neutral and it depends on who is using it and how. What this means is that while some of the “alarm” over Generative AI is justified, regulation and deep monitoring can help limiting the downsides and minimizing the “damage” that AI can wreak on all us.

Already America Inc. has got into the act and so is the Biden Administration that is now actively working with the former and other stakeholders to come up with a “modus operandi” on how to tackle AI and how it can deployed for the benefit of all us.

Of course, this is not to say that we are “on top of the game” as it early days yet, but we will “get there” in due course.

Indeed, some of these “worries” over AI remind us of the time in the 1990s when the internet emerged on the scene and back then, as now, there much excitement as there were fears on how it can make or break the world.

As it transpired, the internet has largely been beneficial and we do feel that AI too would lead us to a more productive and healthy future.

Why You Should Check Out AI Tools Like ChatGPT for Yourself and Understand the Productivity Gain

Indeed, in the debate over ChatGPT and Generative AI, what everyone agrees is that AI, like or perhaps more than other technologies can induce a “quantum jump” in our productive capacities and this is where the opportunity as well as the threat lies.

The former because of obvious economic benefits and the latter, because of the downside of layoffs and such.

So, as we wrap up this explainer on AI, we suggest you check out ChatGPT or any of the other Generative AI tools and get a “feel” of how our future would be and why the attention to Artificial Intelligence matters to us all.