AI: Destroyer or Savior?

The other day I was watching Salman Khan give an interview on the Today show (I think? One of those morning news programs, anyway). He was discussing his new book Brave New Words: How AI Will Revolutionize Education. I really enjoyed his interview because lately all we hear is doom and gloom when artificial intelligence is discussed: deepfakes, bias in algorithms, and job loss from automation to name a few. Khan gave a refreshingly optimistic counter-argument that AI can improve educational outcomes for students when used strategically.

Khan used the expression “technology amplifies intent.” This was the first time I remember hearing this expression, though I’ve learned that the idea did not originate with him (see: Technology as an “Amplifier” [PDF] by Marc Prensky for more). Khan’s larger argument was every new technology that comes along is feared for the damage it can do, but for the most part, these technologies stick around because of the benefits they bring. [I remember a history teacher making this same point by informing us that when trains first came along, a faction was opposed because they weren’t sure what the long-term effects of traveling at such high speeds (15mph) would have on people.]

That’s not to say we shouldn’t be aware of the costs of new technologies and plan for them. The world has plenty of bad actors who will gleefully take advantage of new technology to wreak havoc where they can. However, when we are only inundated with the drawbacks of the technology, we can start to feel hopeless for the future, which can impact our autonomy needs.

Here is why I have faith in humanity, and this will be a recurring theme of this blog: we all have the same six needs, and because we are social creatures, we are highly dependent on the people around us to fill those needs. Most of us inherently understand this and know that acting for the greater good will better benefit us (individually) in the long run. I feel confident that there are more good intentions out there than bad intentions, so when Khan says “technology amplifies intent,” I find myself being similarly optimistic about the future of AI.

Can you think of other examples of new technology that was feared and dreaded? How has society embraced/rejected it since it emerged?