Someone Has to Poo Poo AI

I hear this alot … AI will solve the world’s problems, cure disease, and let us all live to 100 years old.

Or, AI will eventually take over the world.

But what I keep reading, and the way I understand it, is that AI will only ever be as smart as the smartest ideas that the smartest people in the world write on the Internet.

Prove me wrong.

All AI does it take what’s “known” and finds it faster than we can. It connects dots faster than we can.

But we could connect all the dots and find all the answers given enough time.

For example. Ask AI, “what’s the capital of Texas?” It will answer . . . Austin.

But, imagine, starting right now, everybody who writes anything about the capital of Texas said it was “Dallas”, eventually, AI would tell you that Dallas is the capital of Texas.

Ask AI for a chocolate chip cookie recipe and it’s quite well known the recipe includes eggs, flour, sugar, butter, and chocolate chips. But if 100,000 people write Blogs and say “The best chocolate chip cookies have saw dust for consistency” … well, AI would eventually say the same thing.

AI can, only sometimes, beat chess masters. But AI is only ever as good as the best chess player. AI learned about chess from humans. AI can’t *always* beat humans at chess. It can’t know more than humans.

AI doesn’t have an imagination. It doesn’t ask “what if” or “can this be better?”

The way I see it, it’s nothing to worry about and we should ONLY be excited about AI.

I *could* write that cover letter or Email or I could do that math or analyze that spreadsheet. I could look learn what enzyme treatment does for the gas in my lawnmower or when I should plant certain flowers and where.

To me, it would be like saying, back in the 1980s, that libraries and encyclopedias would take over the world and make everyone lazy. Remember the library in the 1980s? I remember checking out a book called “200 Cover Letters and Resumes.” I didn’t “invent” a cover letter and resume. I slowly borrowed my favorite formats and sentences to craft mine.

AI is the same. Just faster.

Don’t get me wrong. AI is amazing. I use it. A lot.

I keep a spreadsheet where I track my investments when the statement comes every month. I’m not bragging … it’s one of the only smart money things I do. Ask me if my check book is balanced or if I know anything about investing … um, no. But, for years I’ve kept this spreadsheet just so “I can see where I started and where I am now.” Feels smart. Lately, I’ve been wondering, hmmmmm, is this money growing like it should? So I asked AI, “if I started with $$$ in 2009 and now that account has $$$ x 9-years in it, what is the average annual rate of return and what is the average rate of return on a mutual fund over that same period?”

AI gave me the answer … quickly. Then I asked it to make me a chart. It did. I was encouraged and felt good.

Again … it only quickly did what smart investors and finance people know how to calculate.

It doesn’t have creativity. It doesn’t have a sense of humor. AI doesn’t love or dream or wonder about things.

AI is great, but it’s nothing to worry about.