We Know Better

Frankenstein had an excuse. We don't.

What troubles most of us about AI is right there in the name: Artificial and Intelligence. Why would we want something not human to be superior to us at one of the things that makes us truly human? Why would we want that?

AI proponents exuberantly, excitedly, tell us (and themselves) it’s because AI is the next big engine of progress, that it will be this magical force multiplier for humanity. Everything easier, faster, zero friction. This is why so much money is flooding into AI, trillions of it, the new gold rush, the next El Dorado of business.

But I can’t help but think about Frankenstein and his monster.

I see the same irresistible fascination. Like Mary Shelley’s fictional doctor, those who push for AI are driven by the same gravitational impulse. The urge to create something like a human, but superior to humans. This time, at thinking.

This is why many of us resist AI and are wonderstruck at the same time. We know that we can win so much with AI. And we can lose so much.

The right thing to do would be to pause. To think about establishing guardrails before racing ahead like headless chickens. But the champions of AI will not do that, cannot do that. The lure of efficiency and productivity is too strong. The dominance of nations is at stake. And the fascination is real.

Money. Power. Curiosity.

Dr Victor Frankenstein, at least, had the excuse of ignorance. He was a curious man, yes, but he didn’t know what he was unleashing. We don’t have that excuse.

We know exactly what happens when a creator loses control of the thing they made.

We just don’t seem to care.

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