Much has been discussed about how powerful new AI tools such as ChatGPT have the power to transform how we work, and possibly how it may make some jobs done by humans redundant. As someone who enjoys reading science fiction and grew up watching Star Trek, it seems like that the reality where machines become more integrated with the way we live, work and play seems to be getting closer.

To fear such new technologies is natural, as it is indeed true that humans performing such roles may find themselves being increasingly side-lined. After all, as individuals, our computing capacity and ability to work endlessly is finite. From the perspective of business leaders and those who see the potential of AI however, the view of AI has been generally very positive.

Was chatting with my friend the other day about how humans can maintain their relevance as AI increasingly helps us with decision-making, automating tasks more quickly and efficiently, and eliminates the need for humans to perform certain tasks.

Personally, I am quite enjoying how AI technologies are increasingly made available at no cost to the man in the street, and how it can help us accomplish things more easily and efficiently than before. In my work, for example, ChatGPT has proven quite useful in churning out lists, suggesting copywriting ideas, create and refine logos easily and even help think of website names, to name a few examples. It has been amazingly effective in helping to kick start ideas, which I can then refine in a much shorter time using my judgement.

I do wonder at times though, how tempting it is to allow technology to take over our lives, to the extent that we depend so heavily on it that we lose the capacity to do things for ourselves from scratch. Being so targeted and efficient also reduces the need for humans to think deeply, or engage in more traditional pleasures like reading or discovering things serendipitously through trial and error. There is a real risk that humans may abdicate our ability to think and decide for ourselves, because we trust so much in the accuracy and judgment of the machines we built to serve us. That will be a sad day for humans, in my opinion.

What can we do to find our niche as humans in an increasingly intelligent world? My friend mentioned that there are still areas humans can do better, such as being empathetic and being able to sense emotions. I agree with that view. It may be time for us to find and utilise our strengths as humans, and work on developing that instead of trying to compete with artificial intelligence.