Older Baby Boomers like me have lived through the most extraordinary information technology shifts in modern history. We recall such "ancient" technologies as typewriters, rotary dial telephones, mimeograph machines, mainframe computers, modems, even AOL. Most young people would not even recognize them.
We were alive to see the dawning of the age of the personal computer, the inception of commercial email and websites, and the introduction of the first smartphone. We experienced, not always comfortably, the great migration from the hard copy world of books, magazines, newspapers and photographic prints to the transient digital world of ebooks, audiobooks and online photo libraries.
Personally, I witnessed the direct impact of computing and the internet on a marketing business I founded in 1983. The preparation of creative work was undergoing a dramatic technology shift as desktop publishing came into its own. Graphic designers had to learn how to do artwork on a screen instead of paper — a transition that was downright painful for some.
At the time, the traditional way to market goods and services was using print advertising in newspapers and magazines. Targeting groups of individuals was most often done through specialty publications and via direct mail. Print ads were supplemented with radio and television advertising when appropriate. Other forms of promotion may have included outdoor advertising and selling through sales presentations, conferences and exhibitions.
My business specialized in B2B marketing. High quality direct mail was often the best way to precisely target managers in companies, but then the internet came along and changed everything. Thankfully, I recognized the impact of the digital revolution; I transformed my business into one that could take full advantage of e-marketing.
When I saw the plethora of social media moving down the digital highway, I was skeptical. I never saw the attraction of sharing lots of personal information online, or having "friends" and accumulating "likes," though I could not dispute the growing popularity of Facebook and Twitter. While I was not into social media, plenty of people I knew were, and that was okay with me.
It's interesting how social media has progressed, though. Perhaps a better word is regressed. Twenty years after the public launch of Facebook, we now understand the harm social media potentially causes, particularly to the young and the impressionable. Social media has become a hotbed of misinformation, disinformation and extreme viewpoints that can spread distrust and hatred, leading to intolerance and polarization.
The historical lens through which I view information technology brings me to today's big shift: AI.
I've been impressed with AI-assisted searches. I've used prompts to get meaningful answers to complex questions. I've even dabbled with AI to create graphic images and been dazzled by the speed of the response and the sophistication of the artwork. That's all terrifically exciting.
AI has such an alluring potential to do good. It could make all of us infinitely more productive, become a valuable partner in so many ways and even solve some of humanity's most pressing problems.
But… and it's a big but…I have the queasy feeling that AI is rushing into mass adoption before its time. Without prudent management of AI, we could all be exposed to a technology that's half-baked and under-cooked.
A chilling example is "Mythos," an AI model recently released by Anthropic "so powerful that it was too dangerous to release widely," according to The New York Times:
Within two weeks, the model, called Mythos, had set off a global scramble unlike anything yet seen in the A.I. era. Mythos, which Anthropic has said is uncannily capable of finding and exploiting hidden flaws in the software that runs the world's banks, power grids and governments, had become a geopolitical chip — and a U.S. company held it.
I'd like to see the tech gurus atop AI companies take a breath and think about the implications, both positive and negative, of something as potentially powerful, transformational and yes, dangerous, as this new technology.
It is hard for me to dismiss the expert naysayers who are setting off alarm bells about the potentially deleterious effects of AI. If their worst fears are even somewhat accurate, we have a lot more to worry about than AI just replacing jobs… it could theoretically replace humanity.
When I think of AI, I have great expectations. But I see both the promises and pitfalls of human genius, all wrapped up in a tidy box of wondrous technology. I just hope the box doesn't become like Pandora's, releasing curses upon mankind.