Why you need to be worried about Robots

Its easy putting away this problem but we know, with Saudi Arabia declaring an AI Robot Citizen, we are uncertain of future. But the good news is we can still live our life like a rockstar. But to understand this problem, I may first present my hypothesis around a little bit of elementary psychology that…

Why We Do What We Do

As Author of Book Hooked Nir Eyal (nirandfar.com) elaborates here:

As Logan, King, and Fischer-Wright pointed out, the workplace is our modern-day clan. We come to the office with the same mental hardwiring we acquired 200,000 years ago when our species emerged. Back then, tribes with individuals creative enough to make new discoveries survived better than less innovative groups. Today, our workplace is our tribe and our impulse to create is no less important. Evolution gave us the mental machinery to seek to improve the welfare of our social groups through discoveries made by each individual.

Humans feel a need to contribute to the world. But what exactly goes in people’s mind when they’re really working. Humans need dopamine. They take it in form of Rewards, little short-term rewards for example Rewards of tribe, Rewards of the hunt and Rewards of the self. Moreover whenever you eat a chocolate your mind releases dopamine. Whenever you enter a workplace you may feel a need to socialize(and who doesn’t?!).

Now what this has to do with AI. Perhaps listen to Wikipedia:

The field was founded on the claim that human intelligence “can be so precisely described that a machine can be made to simulate it”. This raises philosophical arguments about the nature of the mind and the ethics of creating artificial beings endowed with human-like intelligence which are issues that have been explored by myth, fiction and philosophy since antiquity. Some people also consider AI to be a danger to humanity if it progresses unabatedly. Others believe that AI, unlike previous technological revolutions, will create a risk of mass unemployment.

So in other words the purpose is to “simulate grunt work that requires intelligence” for example opening a door. Watch this fun video by Vsauce2

Door opening is a simple task but making a robot do it is not as simple as watching others to do it and imitate them. For Robots its a very complex story.

There are many “reasons” why we do what we do and one of them is Social Proof tendency that is man’s tendency to imitate his fellows and others into doing something. Imagine you’re on a theme park and suddenly an Earthquake arrives while you’re busy posting selfies on Instagram, if every other person safely evacuates and hits record on their Instagrams, what would you do? Same

This sounds cheesy and it is. But some cheesy things are worth sharing.

Now Here’s a little bit of context around Facebook.

Drum Roll Please… Exposing Facebook

Facebook makes use of that little “notification” button. It sends you emails and it asks you if you allow notifications to be delivered to your Desktop.

Now imagine you are on a Car show, say a Faw Car Show or some kind of launch event. Now Facebook has conditioned you to post videos or pictures. Why? because you don’t want to be “missing out”. Secondly why Facebook? in other words not only you’re conditioned to do that(assuming you’re on Facebook and who isn’t?) but once you post you get digital “Likes” which sort of release dopamine in your brain. Now we all agree the net effects are good.

But Wait… Weren’t we talking about Robots. Yes we shouldn’t because Robots will be such a normal part of our world by 2075 that we won’t even notice their existence.

That is why these companies are experimenting with AI. They can see a future few realize. Critics may be right but we will not remember who said what about AI some 60 years from now. So what you should be worried about? Inaction. Do something about it, you don’t want to be missing on this opportunity, if you’re an Entrepreneur then you already know this(a la Silicon Valley), if you’re an emloyee perhaps its time to add IT skills to your portfolio and if you’re a student maybe its time to study Bioinformatics or Mechatronics or Electronics Engineering maybe Data Science who knows? Future is exciting and we must work together for it.

Should robots be any good for us? it is determined by how we react and our agility towards this situation. Adapt before being outdated.

Thanks for listening, also I have a YouTube channel. I talk about Technology, Celebrities and Investors etc. Please subscribe.. You won’t be bored: rebrand.ly/youtu52122