Generative AI -Bullshit as a Service
Technology and innovation prompt us to imagine worrying future scenarios. It’s our nature. We are not afraid of AI, we are afraid of everything. Not because everything is dangerous but because if we can think of it, and can’t disregard it as impossible, then uncertainty will capture our minds.
AI, at the extremes, is either a vector for a post-scarcity world or a vector of catastrophic destruction yet the primary use we’re giving it seems to be for the most prosaic, simplistic, and dumb stuff. AI, Apocalypse of doomers; Promethean fire of boosters… no, it’s just BaaS. 1
AI is taking to zero not the cost of intelligence but the cost of transforming those instincts into bullshit. Generative AI is the first technology ever to be used primarily for BaaS: Bullshit as a Service.
It’s not the fault of the tools or the companies spearheading ChatGPT-like products; our use is our responsibility. The culprit is the human condition, which explains the prevalence of these use cases but doesn’t excuse them at all. We pride ourselves as the most intelligent species but our simplest, dumbest instincts drive us still.
The most common uses for this gift we’ve been given are spamming, cheating, and faking.