How to be a Human in the Age of AI

AI vs. HI Dancing Elephants Press DEP book project and contest article

We know through processes of adaptive intelligence that robots will learn to be more human every minute, but how will we thrive as humans in this extraordinary shift in AI capabilities?

There are increasing predictions about the coming of the time when technological advancement will surpass the capabilities of humankind.

Some refer to this as the “singularity” a term derived from Albert Einstein who first used it as a way to describe the theoretical characteristics of a black hole where the gravity is infinite and where nothing can escape not even light.

For now the term singularity is increasingly used to warn us about the point at which artificial intelligence surpasses human intelligence. The famous British physicist Stephen Hawking (deceased 2018) warned:

“Success in creating AI would be the biggest event in human history. Unfortunately, it might also be the last, unless we learn how to avoid the risks.”

Bill Gates writes it “is already here.” from his blog: Gates notes March 21, 2023

“Then there’s the possibility that AIs will run out of control. Could a machine decide that humans are a threat, conclude that its interests are different from ours, or simply stop caring about us? Possibly, but this problem is no more urgent today than it was before the AI developments of the past few months.”

So what does this mean for humans? How do we thrive during this enormous transition?

In order to survive what can be called one of the biggest shifts in humanity:

I submit that knowing our individual selves at the deepest level is key to surviving and dancing amidst the chaos that will ensue.

Note: According to Chaos theory, chaos occurs when there are major shifts or transitions.

Confusion, mistakes, responses to misinformation, accidents, and conflicts have already occurred with the rise of global internet use. AI can take this further.

Be informed from various sources as much as possible.

One of my mentors and Fulbright scholar Dr. Howard Frederick often referred to the concepts offered by Dr. Herbert Schiller who wrote about the unequal flow of information. He was concerned that corporate entities would control who gets information and who does not thereby contributing to a divide: The information haves and information have-nots. That sets the stage for chaos.

The internet was supposed to solve this problem, but as Schiller predicted corporate ownership increasingly controls who gets information.

So what is a human being to do? Change is upon us. Chaos is a natural byproduct of transitions.

The first step is to embrace and understand the nature of human beings and get to know yourself fully. The Socratic wisdom: “Know Thyself” is now more crucial than ever because what you think you are and how you will be in this world may be up for grabs.

For a simple example: Will a baby be more inspired by a highly entertaining robot than the simple teachings coming from his or her parents? Parents are already competing with cell phones and laptops.

Recent events aided by internet misinformation and manipulation have led to huge human errors, assaults, and conflicts. It can get worse when one’s values are being dictated externally. If AI becomes increasingly the source and regulation of society then who we are as individuals and as a collective is important.

Here are suggested steps that I recommend based on my reading and understanding of what is coming.

Take time to reflect on your history and what you want for your future.

Write in a journal, a blog, some place where you can always go back and find your notes about yourself, your views, and your values.

Listen to yourself and identify your own voice in your head … not your parents, not your friends… not your media influencers.

In my television career as a daily serious talk show host and news correspondent, I had to learn ways to develop rapport and ask questions that would get answers. Some of the techniques I learned helped me listen deeply to the guests and also to myself.

Here is my practice almost daily:

Silent Meditation

I ask myself questions and then quietly without distraction wait for the answers.

The answers are always new and reinvigorating.

Interviewing yourself is a helpful technique for discovering who you are. It will take time and practice to listen and recognize and separate out one’s own harsh self-judgments, fears, and inaccurate perceptions. Over time this practice of listening to one’s self will be a profound experience helping to know yourself at a deeper level.

The AI revolution can be more accurately described as a paradigm shift like the development of the Gutenberg press, the airplane, the mobile phone, and the internet.

AI will present a myriad of choices and voices and unforeseen configurations. (this is my personal prediction)…so being fully grounded and in alignment with your true self will help you protect the quality of your life.

Identifying mentors both living and deceased whose ideas and guidance you trust will also help. These mentors can be in books, publications, and other sources. You do not have to know the mentor personally but their guidance is in alignment with your sense of self and values.

Ask yourself key questions.

Who am I?

What do I really want?

Be informed read or listen to audio books and articles. Make a list of who you trust, but be willing to check back again again on validity. Don’t worship any source.

Here are my choices to date to arm with helpful information

Sapiens: ABrief History of Humankind by Yuval Harari

It’s a great telling of how we became the humans we are.

Limitless: by Jim Kwik offers real tangible stories and practices for effective personal development and learning

Atomic Habits: by James Clear. This book gets rid of the old-fashioned notion of self-discipline and offers better ways to accomplish goals.

The Coming Wave: by Mustafa Suleyman The Coming Wave talks about the good and the bad AI and its effects.

From Bill Gates Blog:

Advances in AI will enable the creation of a personal agent.

“You’ll be able to use natural language to have this agent help you with scheduling, communications, and e-commerce, and it will work across all your devices. Because of the cost of training the models and running the computations, creating a personal agent is not feasible yet, but thanks to the recent advances in AI, it is now a realistic goal. Some issues will need to be worked out: For example, can an insurance company ask your agent things about you without your permission? If so, how many people will choose not to use it?”

This is just an example of why knowing yourself and self-preservation will be intertwined.

This is what drives me as a writer, speaker, and broadcaster. I cannot sit by and see our world change without bringing along as many people to understand this time of transition and how to navigate those waves of change and chaos.

Please join me in taking time to go deep into learning about yourself and what it means to be human before it’s defined and altered by clever AI.

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✍ — Published by Dr. Gabriella Korosi, at Dancing Elephant Press. Click here for submission guidelines.