“Those who promise us paradise on earth never produced anything but a hell.” Karl Popper
One of the disturbing things about the Ai story currently being told (sold) is the amount of hyperbole, hype and creative, futuristic gobblygook that is being pounded from tech pulpits (and forgive me but I write Ai like this on purpose, for me, it better associates the text with the thing-in-itself).
I get it. It’s all about the $$$$. Raising capital, increasing stock values. No, I am fine with this very human weakness - give me the money. It’s a reality. What I’m most concerned with is that besides this, so many of those involved in tech, (and my own field ed-tech especially), believe in this fantastical story of Ai and technology bringing heaven to earth.
It’s why I call myself a recovering tech evangelist. I’ve been there, It’s a religion, I know and I fell for it hard. This tech pulpit is flowing with prognostications: AGI in 6 weeks! Students need only sit with Ai bots for 2 hours a day and then school is out! Driverless cars for sale! No more cancer, hell, doctors will also be replaced. The future of … (you name it).
It’s so ridiculous. This recent sane paper is a good academic read seperating this silly hype from the real applications of what is essentially machine learning. I’d also recommend my favorite modern Momus - Ed Zitron.
I’m not against excitement about technology nor divining, imagining future applications and a future world where technology helps our world. Let’s call it “predicting the future”. Francis Bacon (the New Atlantis), da Vinci, H.G. Wells, Twain, Arthur C. Clark, Ray Bradbury and so many more … No, nothing against this, practical science fiction - it’s part of human nature to ponder and divine future states.
“I don't try to describe the future. I try to prevent it.” - Ray Bradbury
What I’m against is when this turns into “pieintheskyism”. Phantasmic, evangelical nonsense of technology bringing us a new form of the garden of Eden. Prophecy. Nobody will need to work, in a blink we’ll have all our desires met. No more pain. Learning will be as easy as plugging yourself in during sleep. Death itself will be trivial. We’ll know the answer to everything (no, Virginia, it isn’t 42). etc… blablabla …
AND IT IS ALL JUST AROUND THE CORNER!
Listen, I’ve been there. I can spot a tech evangelist an internet connection away. I’ve raised capital, worked with teams of engineers and marketed the future of education ‘til the cows came in. And boy did I wake up. So, let me just finish this piece by outlining some traits all these tech evanglists have in common. Just so you can spot them too. Richard Brautigan’s beautiful poem I produced in video form - highlights these qualities in spades.
Language. It’s full of promises, the use of conditionals. It’s going to happen soon so you better be ready. If you don’t buy in now, you’ll miss the gravy train. Tech evangelists never talk about the dark/other side of technology, it’s all positive, Wow, Bingo! Boom! language. Tech utopianism use language in the future tense - they never talk about what it can do now. If you hear the words “revolution or
Magical Thinking. There is a middle earth, Gandolf wizardly quality to tech evangelists. A shazam and poof. Witness the demos that are meant to dazzle. It’s performance art (often, mostly manipulated like the fake Gemini demo). The magical thinking coats everything. If you throw enough money at it, we can solve it! Look, Ai said paraphrased Jesus’ words - it must be sentient, maybe its even a prophet inside there!
Escatological Beliefs. Never a focus on the now. It’s always about what’s going to happen up ahead. The world as we know it is going to end and we’ll have paradise on earth. Technology will solve all our problems - so subscribe and buy in now, you’ll have a front row seat!
Technology is natural thing. There is an alignment and promotion of technology as “clean”. Sure, maybe for the moment it is a bit dirty but once technology gains momentum, efficiencies will accrue and the negatives will all be solved. It will bring us into a natural state of clean, green yonder. What the evangelists fail to acknowledge (even if there hypothesis is true) is Jevon’s Paradox. As there is more efficiency there is more adoption and thus, any gains are offset. Materialism is the mindset and if we just put all our ducks (atoms) in the right rows - everything will be a natural paradise. Nature is tamed and put into bed, warm with us.
Efficiency and Growth. The human element is to be eliminated. Machines will do everything. Sure, in the short term we’ll need the “munchkins” (that’s what us managers called the Filipinos doing the heavy lifting) to work for peanuts to get us there but after that, we shall be released and forgiven. Speed is the thing, there is never mention that maybe we don’t need things faster, more efficient. Maybe some things like learning, like happiness and enjoyment need slowness.
Dataism. It’s all about data. A/B testing of everything. An Archimedian scream of “Get me enough data and we’ll be able to move the world!”. The way to tech utopia is not through the eye of a needle but through rich data. There is a fascination with data as if reality and truth is aligned and constructed purely with material and get enough of it and bingo! You have consciousness, you have all the answers.
The future of education. The future of technology …
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