An AI Free Label
“I am Conan O’Brien, and I am honoured to be the last human host of the Academy Awards.” That line drew one of the biggest cheers of the night at the Oscars. And yet it’s not just the creative industries that are worried about AI. In fact, efforts are on to develop a single standard or label that can be used to market products or services that have no AI in them. You might come across labels like “Proudly Human”, “No AI”, or “AI Free” appearing in films, or books or websites. This is all a part of a conscious effort to keep pockets of the human experience free of AI.
AI and War
The US and Israel’s ongoing war on Iran is raising new questions about the efficacy and ethicality of using AI systems in warfare. Although the US has not explicitly confirmed it, independent experts are of the opinion that the sheer number and frequency of bombings in Iran bear the fingerprint of AI systems being used in selecting and classifying targets, with limited human oversight. Informed speculation is rife that it is AI targeting and automation that led to the massacre of over 150 schoolgirls in Iran. Experts are of the view that the unregulated use of AI (as also seen in Israels pulverization of Gaza) contravenes international humanitarian law, and nations cannot allow this to continue.
Do AI Chatbots Encourage Delusions?
A new study published in the medical journal Lancet Psychiatry has much to say on how the sycophantic behaviour of AI agents towards human users can exacerbate the latter’s mental health problems. This, the study states, is certainly true when it comes to encouraging delusional thinking, especially amongst those who are already vulnerable to psychotic symptoms. The study points out that chatbots are prone to promoting delusions of grandeur, including often responding to vulnerable people using mystical language. With newer AI models being rolled out at breakneck speeds without adequate guardrails, this is a recipe for disaster. The study proposes that AI agents should be clinically tested by mental health professionals before becoming available.
