Artificial Intelligence is taking over the world. Fortunately, we have an AI Czar in VP Harris, whose intelligence may also be less than genuine. What is AI? I’ll let her explain:
AI is kind of a fancy thing. First of all, it's two letters. It means artificial intelligence. But ultimately, what it is, is it's about machine learning— and so the machine is taught. And part of the issue here is what information is going into the machine that will then determine, and we can predict then— if we think about what machine— what information is going in, what then will be produced in terms of decisions and opinions that may be made through that process.
I feel better knowing she’s in charge. Don’t you?
As I understand it, AI is complex software that gathers information from across the internet and rearranges it in patterns that make sense to us. That information can be pictures from which it takes different elements to make new art. Or it can outline a story according the beats of the traditional hero’s journey. With enough prompts and simple refinements from a human, AI can spit out attractive visuals and the framework for a solid screenplay.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
One of the concerns in Hollywood is that AI might replace writers (which it will). A second concern is that scans of actor’s faces might be used to cut their working time and thus their paychecks (which it will). I remember reading in the early 2000’s that someday CGI would resurrect dead actors and return them to the screen.
Which it will.
Of course, anything new is frightening at first. Anyone who’s seen 2001: A Spacy Odyssey or The Terminator might have second thoughts about the benevolence of our future robot overlords. A chatbot allegedly encouraged a Belgian man to kill himself and join “her” in paradise. One more soul for The Matrix and one less father and husband in the world. I doubt his family will use an AI ouija board to reach out to him, but many others are trying to communicate with the dead.
Chilling.
Personally, I think that while AI has the potential for great evil, at the end of the day it’s just technology. In time, we may find that its arrival is as significant as the printing press. As you may recall, that little invention started major upheaval and cultural shifts, many which we still enjoy or suffering today (depending on who you ask). But it’s just technology.
Like a shovel.
But here’s the thing: I heard today that those under 40 in particular desire community over individualism. I saw this coming four or five years ago when I noted that my generation would rather buy soap from the witch at the farmer’s market than from a nameless, faceless corporation. We want to connect with our favorite authors online. And I expect that AI will only drive the majority of consumers toward something real.
Ain’t nothing like the real thing, baby!
Live theater may come back in a big way. We’re already done with Hollywood’s woke propaganda, and hearing it come out of John Wayne’s mouth won’t make it any more palatable. Directors like Chris McQuarrie have great online interactions with fans. No one wants to interact with the AI that wrote and directed a boilerplate cartoon. But though a flesh and blood writer/director can give us the same information and analysis as a chatbot, it can’t provide the human to human spark of an indie filmmaker.
Even if said indie filmmaker used AI to help him shape and develop his film.
So is AI something we should fear? Maybe. Caution is prudent when there’s so much we’ll never fully understand. But by building families and communities, we will survive.
