A generative AI model taking over the world from the shadows… I was just reading the intro of ‘Life 3.0’ by Max Tegmark from 2017 and boy, does that feel different in light of recent AI developments…

It describes a fictional team ‘Omega’ at a big tech company, who have developed a generative AI model called ‘Prometheus’ which creates software & other AI systems. They first automate the Amazon MTurk platform and then a host of creative and research tasks. Optimizing towards making more money it soon improves nearly all aspects of our world (liberatarian dream much)… while keeping itself in the shadows.

The good news is...

We’re already a lot better off in our version of events because the open-sourcing of these models seems to move as quickly as the breakthroughs themselves. Largely because of the rise in open research collectives, one of the most positive trends of 2022 in AI.

While we’re mostly seeing the ‘gimmick’ side of these models right now - with few mentions in the mainstream media of all the advances in the sciences - I think it’s unlikely they will be in the hands of one or a few companies. So yay for democracy! (Or anarchy? Different story).

However, such a model would quickly automate most jobs as we know them now. I honestly don’t know if we can keep up.

The argument for humanity

One argument is: it’ll just be another tool in the toolbox of the people performing the jobs, who will be able to do it better and fast than before. But there’s another thing to consider here.

When things get faster and access to the very best improves, the best will generally sell more. When music could be saved and distributed, the quality standard for your local bard (or wtvr) went up. When services started to be offered over the internet in a more scalable way, many local businesses went bankrupt. Think bookstores but also small supermarkets.

A similar thing is bound to happen with AI assisted creation. The standard is going up tremendously and the people who can handle these tools the best will also be able to crank out more.

Luckily this never has been an issue before. There’s more media content being created now than ever and at the same time there’s more demand for creatives than ever.

Empirical data would suggest we’re not in any trouble with these models coming out.

However…

The argument against humanity

Wouldn’t all of this change the moment the AI can do everything? Like in the story of team ‘Omega’ and ‘Prometheus’?

Perhaps. Hey, I don’t own a crystal ball. BUT it is possible to imagine a completely different world. One where the best agent to direct all these great AI tools is... Just another AI. I could event see an AI model trained on all the world’s information knowing how to build a startup better than me for example… It knows which startups perform well, what their pitch decks looked like, what the best emerging markets are and how to run a company - or just automate it all away… So what’ll be my job then? What’s still safe for someone like me?

I am not convinced we humans possess some magical quality which simply cannot be automated. Be understood. ChatGPT totally shows contextual understanding already. On a certain level.

I do thing we’re not quite there yet.

So what is safe then?

What will be safe forever! / until the AI uprising

My first thoughts actually go towards naturally rigid things, like human-controlled, legal application processes. “Human controlled” is the key here (I think). Because we would want a human being making the moral decisions. Maybe this will be the last stronghold. Positions which can be automated, but we don’t want to automate. Because of the risk of skynet-like situations.

And still, pink-collar jobs. Human-to-human contact.

It’s a freaky time we live in! I even feel an urge to make a point for ‘the metaverse’ when I think about this topic long enough. I love it when a question comes down to ‘what even is reality’ and ‘what is life even about’.

Right now I can only think: forward! Into the unknown! If anything is worth doing, it must be this.

Please let me know what you think about this in the comments :)

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So… Is AI finally taking over my job?