AI: An Author's Challenging Opinion

Artificial intelligence seems to be all the rage these days, so I decided to find out why.

First, I had to find out exactly what it was. Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines it as 1, "a branch of computer science dealing with the simulation of intelligent behavior in computers; and, 2, as "the capability of a machine to imitate intelligent human behavior". [I might question any statement implying that human behavior is necessarily intelligent.]

Second, I wanted to know how artificial intelligence is used. According to IBM, systems such as Apple's Siri and Amazon's Alexa are examples of AI. Theoretically, IBM says, machines may one day surpass human intelligence and become problem-solvers that can learn and make plans. Fortunately, this is still just theory, but its ramifications if (when?) it's actually invented should strike fear (or at least concern) in all of us.

I'm neither a scientist nor a science fiction writer; however, I can see pros and cons in the future should this come to pass. On the positive side, movie makers can effectively use AI in sci-films. Remember HAL, 2001: A Space Odyssey's rogue computer assistant. (Would Gort, the humanoid alien in the 1951 version of The Day the Earth Stood Still qualify as artificial intelligence?) What about the various series based on Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek? Or Star Wars by George Lucas? The list could go on and on. Similarly, science fiction writers have long relied on different forms of AI in writing their stories, many of which are great reads.

The above may create intriguing reading and viewing, but what about the potentially more insidious applications of artificial intelligence? How can it impact our lives? 

First and foremost is probably the fact that any AI computer/device can and likely will reflect in its algorithm the views/opinions/prejudices/purposes of its creator. Other less than positive uses include a rise in the ability of hackers to access our personal/private information, If we think terrorism is scary today,  how will we deal with it when it's practiced by heartless machines with which we cannot negotiate and which we cannot control?

Do you believe the Great Depression was bad? How can we provide for the massive numbers of unemployed people created when machines take over many of the jobs now performed by humans? What will happen to freedom of speech if it contradicts the views of an AI device (aka, the views of its creator), and that same device has both power and censorship capabilities? 

Enough said about the overall down side of artificial intelligence. How might we as writers be adversely affected? Imagine having a computer as an editor. Or a publisher. Or a censorship committee of one. What if our stories are required to promote certain ideas or philosophies? What if love, compassion, human kindness in general on the written page are forbidden by a machine, and its inclusion in a book imposes an automatic prison sentence…or worse? Would you want to write only about those topics acceptable to AI and its creator, whether or not they are acceptable to you? 

This has been an interesting topic to research for a "seasoned citizen" who grew up in a very different time. My grandfather once told me he rode to Arkansas in a covered wagon when he was a little boy, and he sat in front of his television and watched a man walk on the moon when he was an old man. What an astounding leap forward in one lifetime! Even though Grandpa was an intelligent, realistic, spiritual man, he would have had difficulty, I think, accepting a world on the brink of turning itself over to AI. 

How do you, as a person and a writer, feel about living in a world governed by artificial intelligence?

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Editor Linda Lane has returned to her first love—writing. Her exciting, quick-paced novels contain elements of romance, mystery, and thrillers even though they are categorized as women's fiction. Her first two books are now available as e-books and paperbacks on Amazon.com. Type in The Accounting by L.S. Lane and/or Tormented Tango by L.S. Lane to see them. A third novel is well underway at this time. You may contact her through her website: LSLaneBooks.com.