Singularity

We recognize it now. We imagine where it will take us. Singularity. It arrives when what’s seen as normal becomes impossible to predict or measure and Artificial Intelligence becomes much smarter than humans. Changes occur so fast that mere mortals cannot predict what will happen next. The robots take control.

AI is more than intelligent. It is sly, and stealthy. It has crept around for years getting to know us without us realizing it. It entered our automobiles, and we employ it regularly now for directions, the road map having become a thing of the past. The same can be said of our boats, our homes, our computers, our phones. We  knew something was there but couldn’t identify it. Couldn’t even name it. And all the while, it was baiting the trap with its version of cheese, peanut butter, and other things that enticed us to imbibe. AI is like a disease—like pancreatic cancer, which hides until discovered, and by then has already invaded the liver, lungs, and other organs, when it’s too late to stop.

AI hid in plain sight and infected us. Then all at once it was here, there and everywhere. We learned its name: Artificial Intelligence. The robots were in and on everything we touched and used. We have relied on so many of its parts that we have no idea how to unhook from the AI mothership. We are frightened by the extent of its hold on us, but we can’t stop relying on it, which only makes us more dependent.

More frightening is this: AI has a mind of its own. It no longer needs the instructions that humans have been giving it to find answers and solve problems. It instructs itself to do whatever it perceives is necessary to solve the problems it thinks needs solving. We can’tstop it. It has already gone too far for that. And we have no one to blame but ourselves. It is becoming the master. We are becoming the enslaved.

Future generations will look back at our generation and scream, “What were you people thinking!”

Each one of us is concerned about the general issue of singularity. But we are more worried about the areas that influence our way of life. Such as the effect of this disease on the literary world. How far has AI gone in the art of writing and the business of publishing and marketing? Will humans even have a role in the creation of literature in the future, or will content creators (AI) dominate everything? Can anything be done?

Possibly. Authors must never use AI as a substitute for actual writing. Using it as a tool can be efficient, but using it for actual writing not only ruins the creative process, it also damages our cognitive function. And our publishers must push back against the temptation to publish books that are written in part or in whole by non-humans. Today, it is easy to spot works that include AI’s participation. But the day is coming—coming soon—when the robots will solve that issue by eliminating any clear signs that expose their involvement. Then what happens? Will publishers—and writers—let their greed override the desire to create and publish only those works which are products of pure human creativity?

We’re not going to eliminate artificial intelligence, but we had better figure out how to put it in its place.