We live in the era of artificial intelligence.
An artificial intelligence that, silently, has been penetrating all areas of our existence.
From the moment we wake up until we go to bed – and, in some cases, even while we are sleeping – we interact with algorithms that permeate the digital applications and services of our daily lives.
If we are able to find information on the internet;
receive recommendations for movies, music, books, products, friends or news;
talk to our cell phones, cars or smart speakers;
Translating from one language to another automatically or recognizing faces in photos is thanks to artificial intelligence.
However, the collective awakening about AI has come with the emergence of generative AI techniques, and, especially, chatbots
like
ChatGPT, with which we can have all kinds of conversations and with which we can ask them to write to us, summarize, translate or compose texts of a diverse nature, in any language and almost instantly.
The limit is our own imagination, materialized in the
prompts
(commands) that we enter into these diligent intelligent systems.
As AI conquers aspects that have historically been the territory of the human - writing, visual arts, musical composition, translation - we are witnessing a progressive
robotization
of people from two perspectives.
First, we become human robots by feeding AI algorithms our data: labeling it, providing feedback, and monitoring it.
We are an essential part of the machine teaching process, a kind of invisible biological machines that shape and adjust the behavior of algorithms, in the shadows.
Secondly, the automation that entails the fourth industrial revolution in which we are immersed is not only limited to physical activities, but especially includes cognitive tasks, thanks to the advances of artificial intelligence.
AI algorithms are increasingly making decisions that were previously exclusive to human capacity in areas such as health, finance, access to social services or job promotions.
Algorithms impact how we live, study, work and interact.
They help us make decisions, but they are also shaping the way we interact with the world around us in our personal, educational and professional lives.
We increasingly become human robots, controlled by algorithms that monitor and evaluate our work, define our schedule to optimize production, and assign us tasks that machines are not capable of performing.
We humans, in short, are being molded to fit into the gears of a digital machinery, which in turn has been trained by each of us.
This robotization of humans is accompanied by a humanization of algorithms.
Artificial intelligence is beginning to acquire skills considered exclusively human.
From emotion recognition to creative content generation, machines are demonstrating a surprising ability to emulate and even surpass people's powers in a multitude of areas.
As AI algorithms become more sophisticated, so do our expectations about their behavior.
We are no longer satisfied with being mere executors of orders;
We look for in them the ability to understand, to empathize, to adapt to our changing needs.
This demand for humanization of algorithms reflects a human need: we crave connection, understanding, and meaning in our interactions, even when these occur with non-biological entities.
In a world increasingly dominated by technology, we seek to maintain our humanity, also in the confines of the digital.
The convergence between people and artificial intelligence raises profound questions about the very essence of humanity and the nature of intelligence.
On the one hand, there are concerns about job losses due to automation, especially of intellectual tasks, which can lead to economic and social inequality.
On the other hand, we fear that excessive dependence on technology will make us lose our autonomy and capacity for critical thinking.
What does it mean to be human in a world where our skills and distinctive characteristics can be replicated by machines and where humans are increasingly robotized?
How do we redefine our identity in an era when the line between human and artificial is blurring?
In this context, it is essential to remember that we are the people who shape the world we inhabit, including the technology we invent, on which our future depends and which defines whether or not said future will represent progress.
It is essential to remember that not all technological development leads to progress.
It is essential that, as a society, we demand that technological development is always focused on people and the planet, putting our well-being before economic interests.
It is time to reclaim our humanity and take advantage of artificial intelligence, humanistic artificial intelligence, to strengthen it.
Nuria Oliver
has a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from MIT, co-founder and director of ELLIS Alicante, a non-profit organization to promote research in artificial intelligence in Europe.