Whenever the topic of artificial intelligence comes up—and how it risks replacing humans in many tasks in the near future—the response is often the same and goes something like this: “Artificial intelligence is a useful tool, but human intervention and oversight will always be necessary for a final review and to use it correctly.” Or, “AI is useful for conducting research, but it cannot replace humans from start to finish.”
And yet, it seems that these kinds of statements are increasingly being used as slogans to hide the fact that many people are developing a genuine addiction to using AI, without which they can now do very little.
The images
Let's start with the images, which, with their visual impact, are the first to take center stage.
All you have to do is open any social media app to see how many companies are using AI for their graphics. And even on billboards in cities or in store windows, we can see a variety of graphics created by AI.
And how can you tell? Because they're all exactly the same.
The style is always the same, and it's instantly recognizable.
This could also be a major opportunity for businesses that don’t have the budget to hire graphic designers and advertising professionals, but if it’s the big companies—which until recently had made quality and personalization their strong suits—that are (over)using AI, then something is wrong.
The Texts
Recognizing text generated by AI is a bit more complex, but by no means impossible.
Just as with images, the style is always the same; the recurring patterns are fairly easy to recognize. You can also tell this quite easily from the boredom you feel when reading certain texts, as you get the impression that you’re always (re)reading the same kind of content. And that’s actually the case.
The fact that an artificial intelligence has learned to begin a text in an emotional way, citing recurring events and feelings, does not make the text interesting. Especially after you’ve already read that opening—or one very similar to it—five, ten, or dozens of times.
Once you start paying attention to it, it's hard to stop noticing it.
The Processes
Let's move on to business processes, decisions, and strategies—in short, everything that lies at the heart of business.
We’ve become so accustomed to consulting AI that even important decisions are delegated to it, with disastrous consequences. Decisions made completely out of context, the implementation of useless programs, and the assignment of tasks without taking into account the actual skills of the various people involved. After all, if someone doesn’t know how to do something, they can always ask an AI how to do it.
The use of AI in business processes isn't always disastrous, but you have to be very careful about what you're doing: knowing how to use artificial intelligence to create graphics doesn't mean you're an expert in the field.
People
Finally, we come to the individuals, who must therefore come to terms with their addiction.
People’s dependence on AI is evident mainly through two significant gaps. These are two skills that, until recently, were a source of pride on résumés (even if they were often listed too casually) and are no longer mentioned today: lateral thinking and problem-solving.
Lateral thinking—which we could also call logical skills—was the ability to find unconventional interpretations and solutions. It was a set of skills rooted in a deep understanding of the rules and context, enabling the discovery of new, unconventional solutions. This represents real added value for a company, which thus has at its disposal people capable of finding new solutions.
If every situation is analyzed by a machine, what happens to human thought?
Problem-solving is a skill linked to lateral thinking, and it is the ability to solve problems. No matter what job we’re talking about, a profession can be described as a continuous process of solving small problems, which, when added together, solve big problems—and those, in turn, create a business.
Problem-solving skills are essential; they always have been and always will be. If we lose our ability to solve problems, then we have a big problem—one that no one will be able to solve (pardon the pun).
And it is precisely these shortcomings that give rise to the fear of AI dependence. When you interact with people who seem to have lost—or no longer possess—the ability to use their own logic because it has been replaced by the convenience of artificial intelligence.
Obviously, this isn't a concept that applies to everyone, but we feel confident in saying that it applies to many. We therefore invite you to reflect on your own dependence on artificial intelligence before—as with all addictions—it becomes too painful to...
