I really enjoyed the AI discussion we had today in class because I think it is very important to talk about its pros and cons. If we avoid the tool, not to be too cynical, it will ultimately consume us and take over everything we currently control. The use of AI is an ongoing skill that all of us can get better at. Things are constantly changing within the AI world, so it is important you hop on the train ASAP.

For me personally, I use AI in countless different ways. Whether I have a technology focused question, or roughly how many calories are in my milkshake, AI can answer it (most of the time). Usually, AI is the way to go for around-the-house or everyday questions because it gives you an answer that better suits you’re exact situation. On Google, you have to hope someone on Reddit asked your exact question 15 years ago to get the answer.

My biggest issue with AI models is how the answers it spits out are identical user to user. There are two huge problems with this. First, people no longer think for themselves and rely solely on computer generated responses that have no real world experience to base their answers on. Secondly, and scarier, whoever owns/runs AI can shape the answers it wants to give the public to skew their opinion on anything. If things keep going on this trajectory, pretty soon no one will ever be able to form their own thoughts and feelings on anything. This thought is pretty insane to even fathom thinking about, especially considering how the possibility of it is not 0. Currently, I own ChatGPT plus and Claude premium to somewhat “combat” this problem. Both platforms market how the paid memberships of each provide output that is different than the free versions. Albeit most likely same overall message, the response given is less cookie-cutter and dives into research and statistics to back up their claim. All this being said, there is no question AI still has an incredible amount of work to do, such as consistently updating their information within the database to remain a reliable resource to use. It is important to note, as read at the bottom of the search bar, AI will NEVER be 100% accurate, and it is essential to double-check anything majorly important. Ultimately, this is what AI’s role was supposed to be, a sidekick in the back of our pocket that we can have in times of need or curiosity, not a heart and soul of anything dire.