Entered into ChatGPT: Write the opening paragraph for a blog about AI
ChatGPT response: Welcome to the future, where human intelligence meets technological innovation in the realm of Artificial Intelligence (AI). In a world driven by data and automation, AI has emerged as a groundbreaking force, reshaping industries, revolutionizing everyday tasks, and challenging the very essence of what it means to be human. As we embark on this extraordinary journey into the depths of AI's capabilities, this blog aims to unravel its mysteries, explore its boundless potential, and navigate the ethical and societal implications that come hand in hand with this transformative technology. So, fasten your seatbelts, as we dive into the captivating world of AI and witness the unfolding of a technological revolution like no other.
That’s a real response from ChatGPT. If you don’t know what it is, ChatGPT is a form of generative artificial intelligence that exploded onto the scene in the last year and has been exploding people’s minds ever since. Some think it’s the greatest thing since sliced cheese and others are absolutely terrified. Some people view it as a tool that will enhance the human experience and others see it as yet another example of technology taking over our lives.
One of my colleagues on the leadership team shared a recent experience she had with ChatGPT. She and her husband, both in their 50’s, and their two kids, 20 and 12, were hanging out with another couple, both in their 40’s. They spent hours playing with ChatGPT, asking it questions and giving it commands. Their reactions to it are interesting. The 50-year-olds had a bit of an “Oh shit” reaction. It was fun, they got a lot of laughs out of it, but they also found it a bit unsettling. The 40-year-olds saw it as a valuable tool, already using it in their businesses for mundane tasks like mass emails and other correspondence. The kids, of course, thought it was the greatest thing in the world!
But what is it exactly? Let’s go straight to the source.
Entered into ChatGPT: Write a paragraph describing generative AI.
ChatGPT response: Generative AI refers to a field of artificial intelligence that focuses on creating machines capable of generating original and creative content. It employs sophisticated algorithms and deep learning techniques to mimic human intelligence and produce novel outputs such as images, texts, music, and even videos. Generative AI models learn from vast amounts of data to understand patterns, structures, and relationships within the data. By leveraging this knowledge, generative AI systems can create imaginative and realistic outputs that have the potential to revolutionize various industries, including art, design, entertainment, and more.
So, it’s that last bit that has some people nervous and others downright scared. What exactly does it mean by “the potential to revolutionize various industries”? Right now, no one really knows. You probably use some form of AI everyday and don’t even realize it. Siri and Alexa are forms of AI. If you use an Oura ring or a FitBit, you’re using AI. Cars, televisions, refrigerators, even mattresses utilize some form of artificial intelligence. What makes ChatGPT and other similar systems different is the concept of “machines capable of generating original and creative content”.
When you ask Siri a question, she searches her database of information and spits out an answer. When you ask generative AI a question or give it a command, it not only searches for the answer, it uses “sophisticated algorithms” to “mimic human intelligence and produce novel outputs”. In other words, the two examples of ChatGPT responses above were not just lifted off a website somewhere on the internet. They are completely unique answers generated on the spot. If you were to enter the same commands into ChatGPT, the response you get will contain the same information but it will be worded completely differently. You could also engage the AI in conversation, asking it to clarify or expand on parts of its answer. You can even give it parameters to use in fashioning the answer.
Entered into ChatGPT: Write a paragraph describing generative AI in the style of Stephen King.
ChatGPT response: Deep in the tangled web of our digital world, a dark art has emerged, born from the twisted minds of computer scientists and programmers. They call it generative AI, a monstrous creation that harnesses the power of artificial intelligence to conjure worlds that defy reality itself. Like the hand of a malevolent sorcerer, this unholy abomination weaves intricate tapestries of words, images, and sounds, drawing unsuspecting souls into its web of deceit…
I mean, I’m not making this shit up. That’s the real answer I got. The more you play with it, the more you start to understand the concern that all of this is raising. Take education, for example. A ninth grader is reading the book To Kill A Mockingbird, or at least she’s supposed to be reading it. When she’s finished, she’s to write a five paragraph essay about the types of symbolism found in the book. (You probably see where I’m going with this…) The night before the assignment is due, she types a command into ChatGPT and within ten seconds, she has a full, completely unique essay she can copy and paste and turn in as her own. She might get an A on the assignment, but has she actually learned anything?
To go even further, some suggest that AI, with its ability to answer questions and engage in conversation, could eventually replace human teachers altogether. And it’s not just the teaching profession. It’s already causing ripples through the entertainment industry. Hollywood writers are currently on strike, in part, because they want guarantees that their jobs won’t be replaced by machines that can churn out scripts quickly and, more importantly, for free. You don’t have to pay a computer. There will likely come a day when we’ll have the ability to use AI to manage our investments, to give us legal advice, to do our taxes, to design buildings and infrastructure, to make decisions about health care, to develop a system for achieving personal mastery – hey, wait a minute…
The point is, AI is here and it’s likely not going away any time soon. ChatGPT isn’t the only one. DALL-E is an image generator. Type in something like, A hairless cat playing a banjo, and within seconds you’ll have an image of a hairless cat playing a banjo. Google recently released Bard, their large language model that can generate text, translate languages, and write any variety of creative content. The point is, there’s a very real possibility that real people will lose real jobs to computers that will do the work for free. So how do we hold all of this? Should we set our hair on fire and run around like the sky is falling? I guess that’s one way to go. But that kind of reaction isn’t going to stop the development of AI and it isn’t going to save your job.
Look, there’s no shortage of examples throughout history of new technologies that, at the time, were astounding, exhilarating, and frightening. When the radio was invented, there were people who were certain it was a tool of Satan. Same thing with automobiles, airplanes, the telephone, the television, the internet, and on and on. And there’s no shortage of examples of new technologies making certain jobs obsolete. There used to be an entire industry built upon lighting the gas lamps on the street every evening and putting them out again in the morning. Then came electricity and, almost overnight, gas lamp lighters were out of work. Such is progress. Sometimes it hurts.
Maybe you’ve been hearing the sirens being sounded about AI, maybe you’ve already seen it being put into action and it’s triggering feelings like fear, anxiety, uncertainty. For most people, that’s a completely normal response. New technological developments, especially ones with such wide ranging ramifications as AI, create huge amounts of change. And the nervous system doesn’t like change. Anything that challenges the status quo triggers the fight or flight response and we jump to being afraid, angry, or resentful of the thing that’s rocking the boat. But with proper training, we can shift our perspective and learn to approach change as an opportunity for growth.
Nobody knows exactly what artificial intelligence holds for the future, but being afraid of it or mad at it isn’t going to make it go away. You get to define your future regardless of what’s going on around you. You can choose to remain in fear and anger, or you can choose to accept it as a thing in the world, learn about it, play with it, find a way to leverage it as a tool for good. You might find you can use the thing you feel threatened by to uplevel your own performance.
Join us for a Power Series and get your Inner Matrix tuned up so that you’re ready to face change as an opportunity to learn and grow. Click HERE and sign up today!
