AI

We had our monthly, writing-group get-together yesterday, with two of us producing our Hawaiian-themed writing and a third, sneakily submitting an artificial intelligence (AI) created piece. The reasons she did this was to see if we noticed and to show the ease with which writing could be produced with just a few key words and an AI ap. I had seen examples earlier in the week, when my son, Michael, typed a few words into the ap for amusement. We all had a great laugh at Stephen’s expense. He was a former truck driver and truck drivers are notorious for their liking of pies and coke. So, with those key words, we asked the ap to write a poem in the Cat In The Hat style. A few seconds later this brilliantly funny poem emerged – just like that.

While it is funny, it is also deadly serious. Every single writer is at risk of AI taking over. If people start preferring AI stories and stop buying the people-created ones, where does that leave writers? Instead of a super creative person producing a wonderful piece of work, a deadbeat could come up with something way better.

I wrote a blog a few weeks back, using a quote from the 19th century. This man feared change and look what has happened since then.

But this change is not one of technology, but one that can recreate the insides of the best brains on the planet. And where to from here?

I believe it is already becoming a worry in learning institutions and the like, where people are asked to write an essay or assignment and instead of researching, they are able to type in their words, with the finished product available in a matter of seconds.

We can’t stop the world evolving, but I do wonder where people’s sense of satisfaction will come from if the need for creativity is taken away. There is nothing more satisfying, for me anyway, than sitting at the computer and putting a story or even a blog together. Creativity creates a deep contentment within. I always feel better after a stint writing and I am sure artists, potters and other creative people feel exactly the same way.

The old slogans, buy local or buy New Zealand made might have to be added to: Buy human created.