TECHNOLOGY: Is There a Limit?

More than ever before, the evolution of technology has become terribly rapid and the way we lead our lives has changed and keeps changing… There's so much to unravel so much so that if we do not keep up with the pace and are not properly positioned to envisage what could possibly be after having observed from the past what used to be, we just might be setting up ourselves on the side of the disadvantaged. Hence the need to flow with tide and prepare for the inevitable. A major highlight of Technological Advancement in this day and age is Emergence of Artificial Intelligence. In simple terms, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is really about making computers smart and making them even smarter thereafter. To the layman, what probably counts as AI is some electronic device that is surprisingly intelligent compared to what the typical computer would be able to perform or get done in the coming future. The irony however, is the fact that the same devices we regard as normal and simple today used to be what we once regarded as the peak of human creativity at some point in time. In the nearest future, millions of people are going to be ripped of their means of livelihood because their skills will become obsolete. It's for real! Believe me when I say it's already happening and we can't afford to sleep on this. Practitioners of Noble Professions that we do admire and disciplines we once craved will soon be replaced with robots and smart computers. As it stands, the future holds little for white-collar job experts such as Doctors, Accountants and even Journalists to mention a few. The student of radiology probably looking to build a 25-year career in reading images and x-ray photographs might have to reconsider as this would pose a critical challenge sooner than ever seeing the rapid emergence of smart robots, super-intelligent and conscious machines trained to think and feel. Sebastian Thrun, Co-founder and CEO of Udacity quips, 'Our ability to even stay current is so insanely limited compared to the machines that we build.' He proceeds to make reference to the recent advancement in transportation stating how thankfully, Uber and the likes have democratized transportation thus making it cheaper and much safer to commute. However, this is only the beginning. Sooner or later, there would be replacement with driverless cars and smart power-bikes amidst several other unborn devices thus sending off Uber drivers back into the labor market.

It might interest you to know that job positions and human expertise might not just be the only thing Artificial Intelligence is coming at. It is also headed in our direction. In succinct terms, AI is coming for us (humans) – our very existence. To make things much more lucid, Artificial Intelligence is being introduced into defense departments of nations across the world. Former US Deputy Secretary of Defense, Christine Fox affirmed that the role of intelligent systems is growing very rapidly in warfare. She further asserts that everyone (i.e. nations of the world) is pushing in the unmanned realm. This of course applies to nations of the world reputed for unparalleled invention and unmatched technological advancements in human history. The consequence of creating fully autonomous attacking vehicles seems rather undermined at the moment. In the event that something catastrophic emerges e.g., two powerful nations going to war, the question would be if both nations would restrict themselves to the value system of preserving the human race by resolving not to create smart weapons that could go out of their control sooner than later. As a response to the enormity of the potential chaos that could emerge if developed nations began to deploy autonomous vehicles that can actually sight and kill, an open letter was put forward and signed by the biggest names in science requesting total ban on the use of autonomous weapons. Part of the content reads thus, ‘Autonomous weapons have been described as the third revolution in warfare, after gunpowder and nuclear arms hence the need for global ban on killer robots.’ Sweden-American Professor of Physics at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Max Tegmark affirmed that the intent for which the open letter was put forth was geared towards redefining the goal of the field of Artificial Intelligence. He stated that the chief objective of AI is to create beneficial intelligence as opposed to pure, undirected intelligence. He emphasized the need for the international community to have a regulation structure in place that tames and puts smart devices in check some of which can do literally anything crazy and unimaginable especially devices that possess the capacity for destruction.

In conclusion, Artificial Intelligence has taken its toll on every facet and sphere of human existence and even the blind man on the street is not unaware. AI once used to be the long-awaited future. That future is now upon us staring us in the face refusing to lower its gaze.

Today, it is no longer the future we foresee. The once foreseen future screams it is here…Right upon us and it is now.