Personal views on AI

Figure 1.

Traducción al español, aquí.

AI is on everyone’s lips. A lot is being said (both good and bad) on the subject. There is a very valid fear that AI will take away everyone’s jobs (especially those of us working in the IT industry).

I do not intend to discuss the benefits and drawbacks of AI in the health, technology, employment or financial sectors in this post. There are many people around the world (most of them experts) who have already written and spoken about these issues ad nauseam. What I would like to address today is the spiritual damage that AI is causing across the entire population.

A few weeks ago, a developer friend of mine shared some videos with me about how AI is affecting the role of software developers. It really struck me that in one of them, the YouTuber (presenter) feels useless in the face of this technological wave. AI now does in two hours (for example) what used to take him days or even weeks to develop. For the author of the video, writing code was a craft, and being a developer defined him as a person (something he emphasises quite strongly). And this is where the Theology of the Body has something important to say...

Some of you may know that I am currently studying for a Master’s degree in Theology of the Body as a diploma course. God willing, I will complete my postgraduate studies this year and will be part of the first cohort of graduates from this programme at the Francisco de Vitoria University (Madrid, Spain). I began studying for the Master’s degree because I wanted to explore the subject in greater depth and because I saw that everything surrounding it applies very well to the worlds of work and economics. If you have read this far and are not a believer (meaning a Catholic or of some other Christian denomination), you may find this post somewhat unsettling because I will be speaking a great deal about God. But you may still find the reading enjoyable.

The Theology of the Body teaches us that God sees us and has created us in a way we cannot imagine, which goes beyond our senses and our own human capacities. But, in order to become what God wants us to be, we must allow ourselves to be shaped by him. In theory, all of the above sounds very beautiful, but in practice it is difficult to surrender to his will and hand over the reins of our lives to him.

We all have aspirations and dreams we would like to fulfil at different stages of our lives, but there are times when God proposes something different to the plan we already have (and which always turns out better). I’d like to illustrate this as follows: Arturo might think that the ultimate goal for him is to be the best software developer in the world, and he builds an image around himself of what he considers being the best software developer in the world (he prepares himself, studies, builds his reputation, and so on). But suddenly the wave of AI hits and begins to tear down the whole project Arturo has built, and with it (part of) his identity starts to fade away. Arturo believed that being the best developer in the world gave meaning to his life (and existence). He believed that his professional career defined him as a person. Now all this tragedy makes him feel useless and at a loss as to what to do.

To the world, we are considered to have made something of our lives if we study certain university courses, if we attend certain prestigious schools, if we belong to certain social circles (generally upper-middle and upper classes), if we come from certain families, if we buy certain goods and services, if we wear expensive clothes, if we hold positions at the highest levels of business and politics, and so on. For God, there are no labels or titles. God does not define us by what we believe is valuable to the world, but by how He sees us. What He has dreamed for us from the very beginning is something indescribable.

Returning to the example of Arturo. We might say that the world has already had the final say regarding his identity, but God always has a plan B. What if God has allowed this tragedy in Arturo’s life to show him that this was not the path He was seeking for his life? What if Arturo, if he allows himself to be surrendered to God, begins to be and to do what God has dreamed for him from the very beginning? It is often said that God writes straight with crooked lines. God can show Arturo that, despite his tragedy, there will be a greater good for him. Perhaps later we will learn that Arturo has created an AI app that is 99% accurate in diagnosing cancer. AI is the tool, but the insight that detects another’s suffering is something only we, as people, possess. The personal plan has been replaced by God’s plan. And we can glimpse something else: selfishness has been transformed into a gift (service) to humanity.

Of course, saying all of the above sounds far too romantic and easy to say. To achieve that, one needs good spiritual and psychological support. God will do the rest. «Ora et labora».

We are living in times that are far too hectic and overly utilitarian (though perhaps our ancestors said the same about the eras in which they lived). Human beings are becoming increasingly depersonalised and lacking in purpose and meaning in life (although, little by little, people have been turning their attention back to existential and transcendental issues). It is no lie that, for many employers, we employees are just another number on the payroll who can be replaced just as easily. Nor is it a lie that, for many of them (including tech gurus, tech bros and tech sis, amongst others) we are only valuable for what we produce and do (pure, unadulterated utilitarianism!, as if simply being human were not enough). It was said that AI would give us more time to devote to other, more human pursuits, but the opposite has happened: people have now become addicted to AI and end up burning out (and when this happens, psychological, emotional, identity and existential problems arise).

Writing these lines has not been easy for me. I am currently unemployed, and, as an immigrant from outside the European Union, things are becoming more complicated for me. I am worried about my professional and personal future and view AI with a certain degree of wariness, yet also with optimism. All the hype surrounding AI has made me think a great deal about what I want for my life going forward and has made me more human (and how much we need that!). My sense of empathy has grown stronger (though I still have a few rough edges to smooth out). Those who know me are aware that I can still be quite harsh and biased in my comments (I’m still working on that). Writing this was, in a way, a form of self-medication.

When we set aside all that is material (which is fleeting), and realise that we are people who love, who feel, who suffer, who smile, who cry, who rejoice and marvel at the simplest things in life (that we have a soul!) our sense of transcendence begins to work and God reminds us once again of who we are and what He has dreamed for us from the very beginning.

The way things are going at the moment, I am quite concerned about how far we can go as humanity. I have always believed that science and technology should be put at the service of others. God has given us the cognitive abilities for this, but all too often we pervert all of this (blessed free will!).

All that remains for me to say is that we must not forget that we are soul, mind, spirit and body. AI may be able to mimic our cognitive and even physical abilities, but it will never be able to match us in soul or spirit. These are very lofty matters that only God can comprehend.