AI's Dual Edge: Moving Beyond Copy-Paste to Preserve Human Agency and Creativity
A cruelly simple paradigm (because it is a fundamental skill on which everything currently happening in the world rests) of the copy-paste technique should be replaced.
There is no way to defend against the possibility of copying and pasting everything we do. “ctrl+c/ctrl+p” is essential. This mechanism is one of the fundamental biases of any AI. And any human using AI.
A long time ago, technē covered technology, technique, arts... Let's return to the elementary cognitive skills that we should exercise when fancying:
the basics of formal logic (deduction, induction, abduction)
understanding of probability and statistics
understanding of rhetorical figures and tropes (terribly important)
and finally, the time invested in checking sources of information
This is also familiar, as the foundation of this distinction was established at that same time. The usages were not the same, which is part of the game.
Computation can be “analytical” or “generative,” so as a consequence, AI is twofold: analytical and generative.
By its very nature, an “analytical” is a system dedicated to detection, recognition, classification, control, monitoring, and prediction. It is instrumental in surveillance, quality control, and predictive maintenance.
“Generative” follows the same computational line and, at a certain point, becomes a suite of models capable of generating new data in the form of texts, still and moving images, sounds, music, and, increasingly, complex combinations of all these elements after being trained on large datasets.
Analytical and generative are actually “artificial perception” and “artificial imagination.”
the algorithmic automation of the capacity to perceive
the algorithmic automation of the capacity to imagine
The problem posed by artificial perception is the challenge of preserving the integrity of the individual amid the fear of policy being dictated by anticipatory statistics, which would merely perpetuate existing knowledge, trapping us in an endless control loop.
The danger lies in the potential for these systems to reinforce and amplify existing biases and inequalities, leading to a self-fulfilling prophecy where only the known and measurable are considered valid, thus stifling innovation and diversity.
What are their limits?
“Analytical AI's” perpetual monitoring and predictive capabilities could result in a society governed by statistical determinism, where the relentless pursuit of efficiency and optimization undermines human agency.
“Generative AI’s” artificial imagination presents challenges. It offers unprecedented creative possibilities (which we still need to detect) and raises questions about authenticity, originality, and the role of human creativity.
Sanja Bojanić, Academy of Applied Arts University of Rijeka
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