Artificial Intelligence Vs Humanity: Why We Should Think About the Threat of Artificial Intelligence?

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One of the biggest implementations of Artificial Intelligence can be found in the daily life of consumers. Smartphones are the greatest example, “utilities like predicting what a user is going to type and correcting human errors in spelling, machine intelligence is at work.” (Buzzle, Manali Oak) Siri, GPS and Maps that gives the best and shortest route to arrive at destination, use Artificial Intelligence. Applications that predict customers interest and actions and makes recommendations are all applications that made our life easier than ever before. Also in the entertainment industry we have all type of application of AI. For example, when we play a computer game, we are interacting with a machine that use artificial intelligence. Our opponent is no more than a sophisticated program that response to our action with the help of Artificial Intelligence. “Thus, gaming is among the most common examples of the advantages of artificial intelligence.” (Pros and Cons, Mike Fekety)

This is just a small part of the advantages and what AI is able to do and many more are yet to come. Artificial intelligence seems to be the best path to choose for our future, but we have also to take into consideration all the possible concern and disadvantages that this technology could bring to our society. As seen in many movies such as iRobot, the Matrix or even WALL.E, if machines start doing everything for us, that we become completely dependent, if machines want it to hurt our society, simply shut down and ruin our economy and lives. Although this is only movie fiction, is still a real possibility if machine become to smart and we become to dependent. We should have a sort of back up plan for the potential issue that could come in the future, in order to stop machines if they “got real smart”. (Advantages and Disadvantages of AI, inofbarrel.com) The idea of being replaced from machines to do our jobs might sound wonderful, saving us from all the pain. But is it really like that? As machine will do our jobs in every field possible, we will eventually lead to unemployment. (Buzzle, website) We will fell useless and this could lead us to mental illness and obesity problems. Also, our intelligence, multitasking ability and mental capacity might gradually reduce. Another important concern about Artificial intelligence is about ethical and moral values. Are we allowed to install intelligence in machines? Is it ethically correct to create human replicas? Intelligence should be a gift of nature and our moral values should not allow us to create an intelligent species. Artificial intelligence might be a problem also in the military. Automated robots might be programmed to do the wrong things and kill innocent people.

When comes to defense, and more precisely military weapons, the debate on how we should use Artificial intelligence to control lethal weapons is more complex than it seems.

Recently it has been signed a letter from thousands of scientist and researchers in that field in order to ban lethal weapons controlled by AI because of the “growing concern that this technology could be harnessed to make killing machines more efficient and less accountable.”

Military technology, thanks to the artificial intelligence has “advanced to allow action to be taken remotely, for example using drone aircraft or bomb disposal robots”. (MIT Technology review, website)

During the International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the letter was presented and signed by the leading researchers and scientist. The letter states: “Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology has reached a point where the deployment of such systems is practically, if not legally, feasible within years not decades, and the stakes are high: autonomous weapons have been described as the third revolution in warfare, after gunpowder and nuclear arms.”

One of the biggest concern among the scientist is that if this technology continues to evolve at an enormous fast rate, the possibility that we wont be able to control it is real. Drone and robots could become more automated, taking decision without the need to ask a human the permission to execute a specific task. Just imagine a full armed automated drone that is flying in the sky over your head that can decide whenever he wants if can shoot or not. It seems absurd, but “some say the idea of fully independent machines capable carrying out lethal missions without human assistance is more fanciful.” (Military Robots: Armed, but How Dangerous, Will Knight)

One of the point in favor, which the letter does acknowledge, is that “automated weapons could conceivably help reduce unwanted causalities is some situations, since they would be less prone to error, fatigue, or emotion than human combatants.” (Military Robots: Armed, but How Dangerous, Will Knight) There is of course advantages and disadvantages for this technology, but as The Future of Life Institute reported in an interview, there is a more general warning about the long-term risks that could pose some dangers in the near future.

In a recent interview to the world famous scientist, Stephen Hawking, published on the British newspaper “Mirror”, he gave his warning about the future of the human race and its concern on the possibility that a “rogue AI” could be difficult to stop without appropriate safeguards in place.

The truth is we don’t’ have any certainty. “AI began as an attempt to answer some of the most fundamental questions about human existence by understanding the nature of intelligence, but it has grown into a scientific and technological field affecting many aspects of military, commerce and society.” (Artificial Intelligence: Realizing the Ultimate Promises of Computing, David. L Waltz)

Currently all we can do is speculate on the several benefits and risks before employing it for human convenience. The threat might be real and only the time will tell us if we made the right choice by continuing developing this technology.

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