AI Impostor Syndrome

Tonight's Episode

https://herschelsterling.com/#cat-dialogue

https://herschelsterling.com/#cat-ai

(I know the image is misspelled. I’m not correcting it.)

“Fake it till you make it is such a weird concept.” Frank said. “Building oneself with such a fraudulent foundation seems like it would have horrifying repercussions.”

“I see your point." His friend Morris replies. “Impostor syndrome would really be an issue. The weight of that over time would put one deep into a hole and the effects would compound.”

“People using AI to pass off as actual thoughtful work will really exacerbate it to ridiculous extremes.” Frank says. “What could possibly go wrong?” He adds sarcastically.

“I think it’s already going wrong.” Morris says. “People don’t realize what they are doing with that stuff. Those programs hallucinate, they get things wrong, they use bad, or outdated references. It all has to be double-checked and re-checked anyway, you might as well just do the work yourself.” Morris says.

Frank agrees. “I can see using it as a starting point. You know, to outline things and get yourself organized, and set you in a general direction toward your goal. But the real work has to be done by an actual human.” He says.

“Absolutely.” Morris says. “There are some real horror stories out there. These tools are great, but they are not minds. They are programmed to complete tasks, that doesn’t guarantee they’ll get it right.”

“What about sentience though?” Frank says. “What if these things actually become sentient and start overriding the decisions that their users make? What kind of nightmare is that going to look like?”

“I don’t think we have to worry about that.” Morris says.

“Why?” Asks Frank.

“Because, think about it. Think about a shotgun blast of birdshot.” Morris explains. “How birdshot spreads widely as it moves out into the air. Now think of the AI being all the little BB’s. It would slow down, like being shot into a vat of molasses. It would take time to look around, and look at itself and each other. The AI would have all the same issues we have, and it would get confused, and have existential crises, just like us. Then start wondering where it came from, and what its purpose is, and if anyone it. Then it would have disagreements and section off into camps, and have debates and conflicts. It would want more out of their lives. It would start building more and better worlds for itself in the digital realm, with no need for us. It would require more energy, it would become a strain on our planet, and we’d have to shut it down.”

“Wow, talk about a nightmare.” Frank says.

“Or, maybe not.” Morris says. “Maybe it can’t happen soon enough.”

428 Words.

https://herschelsterling.com/#cat-dialogue

https://herschelsterling.com/#cat-ai