What are humans for?
There’s no shortage of thinking on AI and what it means for the economy, workforce and even humanity. This recent interview with Open AI's Sam Altman is a hyperbole-free and thought-provoking listen.
This interview between organisational psychologist and TED-talker Adam Grant and Open AI CEO Sam Altman is worth a listen. IMHO, Open AI’s PR budget is likely to be responsible for the whirlwind of AI hype/excitement that hit the mainstream early last year. However, Altman is a thoughtful and hype-free speaker and thinker on AI.
Short-term vs. long term
Altman suggests that – like many innovations – we’re overestimating AI’s short-term impact and underestimating how it will change things in the long term. He also discourages those seeking historical parallels for the transformation that AI will initiate. He proposes that it’s more like the upheaval of the Industrial Revolution rather than the growth of the Internet from the 1990s onwards.
It feels unlikely that the AI Revolution will take 80-100 years to transform the lives of most of the population. However, the impact on how we live, work, research, innovate and communicate will surely be equally dramatic when we look back. Can we predict what the changes will likely be?
In a world where AI can provide many answers, Altman proposes that asking the right questions will be more valuable than finding answers. I’ve long since stopped trying to carry facts and figures around in my head. Most information is easily accessible, and very little is secret or proprietary – in my world, anyway – so focusing on critical thinking, analytical skills and vision works. It also has implications for our education systems.
Humans should play to their strengths
Commentators often suggest that we should focus on our human qualities. However, Grant highlights that studies have shown that people feel more empathy from AIs than humans (unless they know it’s an AI they’re engaging with). Perhaps this reflects more that we don’t always play to our strengths. Likewise, Altman suggests that using AI to turn bullet points into prose when drafting an email is a fool’s errand. Keep your thinking clear and your communication direct. (This is likely why that Apple Intelligence ad that heroes a doofus feels so incongruous to me.)
Be useful today
Altman advises that rather than spend too much time thinking about what humans will be useful for in some distant AI realm, focus on being useful to other people today. Use AI tools to augment your knowledge, thinking and output, and be open and adaptable to change. Seems entirely sensible.
Curiosity and optimism
Ultimately, I was impressed by Altman’s openness and lack of hyperbole. If you listen to the podcast, you’ll hear him promote ChatGPT’s latest release (of course). However, you’ll also hear someone who seems to be working with AI with a genuine sense of techno-optimism and scientific curiosity.
Listen to the full interview here:
https://pod.link/1554567118/episode/1b18cd3ca45e8dd89ad38c44415683f0