How far can AI really take us?
AI will be increasingly present in our future — that is incontestable. How and when, however, are questions that cannot be definitely answered. We can only speculate for now, but I believe 100 years from now we will be living alongside robots in everyday life. Does that scare you? It should.
Programmers are becoming more dedicated, more advanced, and certainly more skilled. As they continue to achieve, artificial intelligence will evolve into human-like forms. As robots become indistinguishable from humans in terms of looks, personable traits, and skill level, will human duties become obsolete? Think about it — which is better at computing math, a computer or a human? Which is quicker at finding relevant sources, a computer or a human? The list goes on and on; computers in their current form have taken over many human tasks and made them quicker, more reliable, and overall more convenient to complete. Now take this same technology in your computer, advance it 100 years, and then stick it in a robot of similar physical stature to a human. Why would any employer choose the human over the robot? This is a fear of mine, and many others across the world share this fear.
However, the future of AI is not all worrisome. Advancement of technology always comes with risks, but oftentimes the pros far outweigh the cons. I believe this will be the case for AI; this is easy to demonstrate when considering the possibilities of such an advancement. Take the classroom setting, for example. Imagine an education system where curriculum is based on personal goals and abilities, and which is catered to the individual. Perhaps this is done by the employment of virtual reality paired with machine learning. A student could enter a virtual reality world to learn, creating an immersive, experiential based education experience. With the addition of machine learning, the technology is able to track the progress of the student, advance the curriculum based on achievement, and make changes to the learning experience based on feedback. This kind of learning atmosphere has the potential to contribute significantly to preparing K-12 students for college — possibly causing a much needed increase in percentage of students leaving high school that are considered “college ready.” (For those interested, this number is currently below 20% for Texas).
Beyond the practical applications of AI, I believe it is also going to enter our personal lives. Tasks such as laundry, cleaning, dishes, and even putting away groceries will become things of the past for humankind. These are all tedious, annoying chores, so why wouldn’t we want a robot to intervene? It sounds great, never having to do laundry again, but what are the consequences? Today, we speak and worry about the couch potato society Americans love to promote in their daily lives; obesity rates are already on the rise, what will happen when we no longer have to do things for ourselves? It is easy to see how these numbers could quickly increase at an exponential rate, dooming society for an overweight, lazy lifestyle. If this were the case, health would decrease substantially, and suddenly a new epidemic could be upon us. Advancement in technology comes with responsibility; are Americans willing to take on this responsibility?
If we could execute the future of AI with care, responsibility, and active monitoring, there should be no reason to be afraid. But, I believe there should be an upper limit on the progression of AI, and this currently does not exist. How far will programmers and scientists take artificial intelligence? It is only a matter of time before we find out.
