For many years, we believed that intuition is a human-based trait. However, the progression of AI science through the years has surprised us. Seeing algorithms and technology that can possibly mimic human intuition in certain circumstances is astounding. A recent example of this is the Google DeepMind Challenge Match. In the exciting new era of AI, we will face new challenges, including substitution of both human labour and human-controlled society.
Imagine a society where self-driving vehicles transport all goods and passengers, and companies replace human employees with sophisticated AI systems. There will be no place for us to perform historically conventional functions in this new society. Even now, freelancing is the main source of income for around 35% of U.S. citizens. Availability of sophisticated AI will further increase the percentage of freelancers in our population.
Experts disagree on many matters relating to the helpfulness of AI. Some claim that we need to avoid or bypass this approaching change. However, as our ancestors have already experienced with other revolutions, such as the Industrial Revolution, this new one is inevitable. The question should not be whether we will accept this challenge or not. The real question should be how we will respond to this challenge.
Right Solution to AI revolution?
Create new unique industries that humans can do better than AI.
Humans cannot compete with AI in any trainable capacity. We should not delude ourselves into believing we can compete with systems more efficient than our brains (granted, only in certain areas). Then how?
To prepare for the new era, society’s core perception of education must be completely re-evaluated; the purpose of education should not be to conform every individual with the same curricula but to discover and nurture each individual’s unique talents.
Even now, each person spends around 17 years merely memorizing easily obtainable information. The truth of the matter is that most of the obtained so-called knowledge is not applicable in people’s lives after they start their careers.
A Change in Perspective
Instead of spending almost a quarter of our lives memorizing information, the new and improved humankind needs to be able to drive themselves to obtain a more diversified set of skills and knowledge. Rather than striving to become a cog in the machine and playing a small role in society to service another’s or a business’s purpose, each person must find and pursue their own personal mission in life.
College courses and other channels of higher education will be open to the public, courtesy of companies like Coursera, founded by an AI Scientist named Andrew Ng. The resources for us to prepare for the coming change are available. Now, we must decide if we have the will to utilize them and embrace the change.
Will this really help us continue thriving?
I believe that each person can create one unique combination of skills, eventually differentiating themselves from other individuals and AI; when each individual in our society can become the best in their own special area of expertise, they don’t need to compete with others and AI. It will be almost impossible for AI to mimic skills that are not normalized even in the human population, and there will be no reason for it to.
Replacing a famous artist will not serve its purpose, nor will it add any value by doing so.
The next stage of Human Evolution is here; we need a Human Revolution
In ancient times, people needed to hunt animals, as it was their main source for food. Now, we hunt for fun. From the Middle Ages to Early Modern periods, mathematics and sciences were mostly for the nobility and affluent, but they have now become essential parts of our lives and jobs. We used to (and still do, to some extent) think that creativity is required only for a certain subset of the population, like artists. In order to survive in this new era, everyone must be unique and creative enough to set themselves apart from others and AI.
The era of AI has finally arrived, and we now need to respond to this new challenge. In order to survive in this new era and maintain humankind’s worth in society, we must differentiate ourselves and embrace new values and characteristics that only humans can create and develop.
Share your thoughts now.
