"Will technology overrule humans?" is a thought provoking question that has touched many experts around the world. The line of distinction between humans and technology is gradually blurring as machines are performing human-like functions. A growing number of people belonging to the tech field have either lost their jobs or are at the risk of becoming jobless. A recent study has revealed that 30% of the activities, particularly tasks that are monotonous and repetitive will be autonomously performed by machines in 2023. This era is more about Artificial Intelligence which has ingrained in every walk of our lives in one way or another. Whether you use Siri for weather updates, Alexa to play your favorite music or to turn on your smart lights, every gadget and device is powered by AI technology. However, humans have to cope with the changes and embrace the challenges that their own actions and inventions have brought up for them.
The good side
There are a wide range of activities in which AI technology has surpassed human capabilities and intelligence. For example, it helps in language translation, answering questions, speech recognition, tracking and fighting cyberattacks, complex decision making, discovering patterns and analytics and assists in a lot of other tasks. Smart systems (homes, appliances and vehicles) have been saving time and money and have also enabled people to have access to more customized features. By gathering massive amounts of health related data, many diseases will be cured. Even the informal and formal system of education will transform and thrive as a result of EdTech.
The bad side
On the other hand, many experts and individuals have expressed deep worries that the future will deprive humans from intervening and using their intellectualism for the accomplishment of tasks. The loss of human control over various processes is due to the rise of automated systems and digitized lives. Decision making is now code driven and people lack the skills and inputs that are needed for the tools to work. With time automation is becoming complex and beyond human perception. Values and ethics are not taken into consideration (data abuse and surveillance) when such systems make people's decisions. It’s quite difficult to regulate these networks that operate globally. Everywhere, governments want to attain power while companies attempt to make huge profits without caring for individuals’ privacy and security.
Social upheaval and economic disparity will continue to increase as people are being laid off by companies who are shifting toward AI. This will cause a major disruption in our lives. Some say that over dependency on AI and other similar technologies will erode the cognitive and survival abilities of humans and the way they interact with others. They would not be able to take actions independently, without relying on machine driven networks. Another concerning subject is the introduction of autonomous weapons which might give rise to carnage and many lives will be lost in future. Cybercrimes will also rise as AI is giving an opportunity to the cybercriminals to improve the effectiveness of their malicious attacks.
Way forward
The only possible solution to mitigate these risks and
threats is to follow worldwide digital cooperation by entering into a rational
agreement. Value based systems must be introduced to ensure that technology is
socially acceptable and parallel to ethics. More work is needed in order to
expand human capacities and the idea of prioritizing humans along with
Artificial Intelligence must be promoted at a larger scale.
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