Page 11 - Monocle Quarterly Journal Vol 3 Issue 2 Spring

some encouraging breakthroughs, we argue that there is a very long way to go before machines acquire anything near resembling human intelligence.
The third section focuses on the future of artificial intelligence and the many ethical and societal concerns that have been raised in relation to the potential implications of AI. Taking these concerns into account, we look practically at how justifiable these issues may be, and to what extent the sometimes-hysterical fears surrounding artificial intelligence should be entertained, by realistically assessing the capabilities and limitations of present and future AI systems.
One of the greatest concerns we identify regarding AI is not its potential to become smarter than humans, taking our jobs, and effectively making us disposable. In fact, we argue that some of the greatest benefits of AI will be realised exactly by machines becoming more efficient at certain tasks than humans. But a central problem that does arise is that of power. As will be evidenced, there is one resource above all others that will most likely determine the balance of power in the world of AI –
...there is one resource above
all others that will most
likely determine the balance
of power in the world of AI –
and that resource is data.
and that resource is data. The disturbing concentration of public and private data in the hands of the biggest technology firms, known as Big Tech, we argue, is perhaps the greatest threat in relation to AI’s development. This is a problem that has been particularly evidenced by high-profile instances of gross misconduct, such as the Facebook data leak involving Cambridge Analytica. This case has publicly exposed the extent to which these firms are really harvesting and hoarding our private data for their own purposes. And in this sense, we believe that this centralisation of power in the hands of a very few is a much larger and more pressing issue than the apocalyptic imaginings of artificial intelligence rising up to overcome the human race.
INTRODUCTION
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