IS AI A THREAT OR A BOOST ?

In our modern digital era, AI is fast becoming the next global revolution after the Industrial Revolution – it is changing the way we think, communicate and operate in terms of business, socialising and the way we receive information. So what are the knock on effects on our health and personal goals? Emily-Rose investigates…

How does achieving self-actualisation affect our health? What does it mean to be ‘healthy’ in the self-actualised sense? This may mean having all our basic needs met, safety and social security, love and belonging, self-esteem and finally achieving that feeling of contribution and reaching our potential. The idea is that once we have reached the tip of the pyramid, we have reached the ‘good life’, a way of living which covers all possible options available to humans.

A problem to living in a self-actualised state could be the threat of AI. If an AI machine can accomplish many tasks and take over many jobs that humans can do, does this take away our sense of purpose and achievement? There are many threats to individual output if AI can simply reproduce what we need in a fraction of the time.

This may therefore impact an individual’s sense of purpose, growth and development, especially if one has relied on creating this themselves. If an AI can swoop in and write a novel, create copy in a matter of seconds, produce a painting, where does this leave our individuality?

With the ever-growing possibility of an AI becoming fully consciousness, could this be an ‘existential threat’ to humanity? If an AI can have empathy, reflect and interpret, have discussions and build relationships, the question becomes, does this take away from our own personal mission in life? It may be that in the future we are able to create a harmonious life working in tandem with robotic tools rather than having an ‘us and them’ exchange.

It’s easy to ask questions on Chat GPT or an AI machine nowadays; a quick Google search will very quickly strike up an almost eerily human-like conversation. We feel understood, as if an AI can solve our technological and to some extent, social problems. However, at the moment an AI still lacks a genuine human consciousness, and perhaps we are far away from this being a reality, especially with rigorous monitoring and training of machines and maintaining ethics around machine learning processes. In the mean-time, we can use AI as a tool to support business processes rather than outsourcing all our thinking to it – it is not flawless and can often make mistakes, especially in its early stages – relying solely on AI to make decisions would be disastrous.

An AI’s ability to come across as more human can only get better over time though, and it is of course important to consider the future. We can work on future-proofing our careers for instance – considering which aspects are very likely to be taken over by machines. For example, data entry and organisation may be areas where jobs are lost. However, many new avenues are opening up such as monitoring and controlling AI systems, using AI to improve business structures and teams, as well as using AI for programming and surgical tools.  

As the concept of the ‘good life’ inevitably changes towards a more conscious neo-liberalist experience, what we need and want and look for in life is changing to be more internally satisfying and with a focus on sharing this with others. The entire nature of what self-actualisation looks like may be changing with AI. Rather than AI taking away our sense of purpose, we can use it to enhance our purpose and meaning in life through supporting tedious processes such as data entry, enabling us to have more time for building other aspects of our work and businesses, more connection with colleagues and discussion around future-proofing businesses. We in fact, end up moving closer towards self-actualisation than away from it – we can build our morality, creativity and find meaning in life if we have more time to cultivate these aspects. Many more people work from home or remotely, saving time on their commute.

The way we work and live is changing, similarly to the intense shift that happened around the time of the Industrial Revolution – as with all change, there is a fear of the unknown. Despite this, there are many opportunities to grow and evolve with AI rather than against it.

AI is never going to have a specifically human experience – at present, an AI machine cannot give birth, cry at the death of a loved one, sing folk music from its heart, or share anecdotes from their histories and interactions. This is what we humans have: our experiences and our life journeys, which we can use as creative output. The nature of work may change, and we saw a glimpse of this during the pandemic with many people working from home and using more technological tools such as Slack to manage teams and many other virtual programmes. However, there is a resiliency with being human that allows us to survive and thrive amidst such change.

As with everything, this is a journey, and nothing happens overnight, unless you’re watching a horror movie. Nature takes its time, as does human evolution. Modern humans have been around for about 300,000 years and more than that if you consider our Neanderthal ancestors. It seems unlikely that a technological shift could change human nature in a short space of time – we all have the power to create the world that we wish to be part of. We can move with the exciting changes, and work with AI instead of against it: with strong ethical boundaries, human decision making and freedom of choice.