The AI Elephant in the Room

Let me preface this by saying I don't have the answers; in fact, I honestly believe there isn't a "right" answer.

But I want to take a moment to explain my approach to the controversial, disruptive technology known as AI.

I want to make sure that you understand that this is my own personal position, based on the people in my life, my career, and my own feelings. And here's the thing - I'm not even comfortable with where I'm at on this. I don't know that there is a comfortable place to be when it comes to AI. And in all likelihood I'll change my mind - often - as this new landscape unfolds.

But here's my reality.

Setting the stage

First, I'm an Elder IT Geek (hence this blog). I'm married to a wonderful person who's also a professional actress, director, and educator. My cousin Ward Jenkins is an award winning illustrator and animator. I've seen, firsthand, the ugly side of AI - using it to steal the likeness, voice, art style, content, and livelihood of people close to me. And in no uncertain terms, that is wrong. My wife has had to be much more careful when considering audition requests - she has to carefully read the brief and the contract, because on multiple occasions there's been a clause in there that gives the producers the right to use your image, voice, etc. for "generated content" in perpetuity - with no compensation. Basically, they're actor farming so they can generate AI versions of the actors that sign that contract.

And we all know the controversy with other creatives, especially artists, musicians, and writers. Their work was used, without their permission or compensation, to train pretty much every AI and LLM out there.

And that's wrong too.

BUT (you knew that "but" was coming...)

In what I do, in IT, AI has been revolutionary. Like, I cannot express how revolutionary. Productivity has skyrocketed, especially for people who know how to use AI as a productivity tool, a force multiplier in development, and not let it run amok unchecked.

And to be brutally honest, if you are a developer and you are NOT learning about AI, and learning how to use it effectively, you WILL lose your job to someone who does.

And that's been a very hard pill to swallow.

Here comes the elephant...

At the advent of the Industrial Age and the internal combustion engine, there was an immediate explosion in manufacturing productivity - but it came at a cost. Blue collar workers were treated almost like slaves. The environment was being ravaged by all the smog and pollution, and no one at the time understood long term environmental impacts - or if they did they didn't care because they were getting rich. If you were a common worker, you didn't get a piece of the pie - you were the mincemeat filling it.

And this is always what happens when a disruptive technology comes along that essentially reshapes society. Technology always outpaces regulation and legislation, and every time the people who are in line to gain the most barrel forward headlong before legislation catches up. And local governments are happy to let it happen, because every politician loves tax revenue not tied to a voter.

During the Industrial Revolution regulations did catch up - but it took decades. And that's unfortunate, but it's a pattern that repeats throughout history, especially in the 20th and 21st centuries.

And we're seeing the same pattern again with AI and their data centers. Data centers are gobbling up agricultural land and draining aquifers dry. A single large data center can consume millions of gallons of water per day for cooling. And local officials are letting it happen because they got a sweetheart deal and "can't say no".

Yet the Industrial Revolution soldiered on. And so will the AI Revolution, for better or worse.

Before you go looking for stones...

The internet, and more specifically social media, has given rise to the voices of many moral absolutists. It's very easy to voice your opinion - loudly, passionately - today. Even I do it, more than I care to admit. But things are rarely black and white, if ever.

So before you start looking for stones to throw, I just want to caution you to remember that we all live in glass houses. We are all, collectively as a society, guilty of living in and perpetuating a knowingly destructive industry - the petroleum industry. We are, for better or worse, a global petroleum economy. It literally touches every single facet of every single person's life. And if it suddenly went away tomorrow, humanity wouldn't survive. And the worst part? We don't have a backup, and we're running out of it.

And this is what makes times like these so difficult. You can both be opposed to something and still have to be a part of it. During the Industrial Revolution workers kept working while fighting for their rights. People kept driving cars while fighting for emissions controls. Workers continued to work for substandard wages until unions and the minimum wage were put into place.

You can hold two opposing views, and both be true.

The uncomfortable reality

In the end, there is no "one right answer". Right now, especially in the early stages of the Age of AI, the greedy people are going to exploit the gaps and margins at the expense of society and our environment. And to be brutally honest, we won't be able to stop it, because quite frankly there's too much money to be made - and humans have proven time and again to be shallow, short-sighted and self-centered.

So what can we do? What can you do?

I think each of us has to carefully consider how we respond to the AI Revolution, and make the best, difficult choices that we can live with. Each of us has to balance our principles with the reality we're living in, which means that we may have to compromise those convictions to survive. Then all that remains is living with your decisions.

Personally, I have accepted my uncomfortable reality. I must use AI in my job, or I won't have a job - or a career. That's just the way it is. However that doesn't mean I'm a full-throated proponent of AI. I will actively defend the rights of creatives like Ward and my wife. I will continue to write my Congresspeople to encourage them to put regulations in place to protect our environment and our people. In the meantime, all I can do is continually reassess the situation, adjust my actions accordingly, and hope that I can continue to look myself in the mirror, however uncomfortable that may be.

I want to leave you with my favorite quote from my favorite sci-fi novel series, Dune:

Run faster. History is a constant race between invention and catastrophe. Education helps, but it's never enough. You must also RUN. -- Leto Atreides II (God Emperor of Dune, Frank Herbert)