On how generative AI is an accelerant and how it compares to PCs and the Web

People have many perspectives on generative AI.  On Bluesky in particular, it’s perceived negatively. They see it as a huge drain on environment. They see the people who develop it as IP thieves. They see it as taking away jobs.

For people who think this is the only way generative AI can be, I’d like to point them to the work my employer is doing with AI and the AI ethical guidelines they’ve published here.

Generative AI can be seen in a positive way. My opinion (not speaking for my employer) is that as the tools that sit in front of gen AI get better and the models that underline gen AI improve, we all will use it every day, in the same way we use search engines and spreadsheets every day.

I’d add that gen AI technology can be considered an accelerant. In any given social order, some participants will choose to adopt an accelerant and disrupt that order by speeding past others. It could be high skilled or low skilled participants. Those who value the current order and their place in it will try to prevent that from happening but likely will fail. This happened with previous accelerants like personal computers and the Web. People who were invested in the order before PCs and the Web were disrupted by those who adopted and exploited the capabilities of the accelerants. (Not all accelerants are technological: literacy, voting rights and access to financial services are also accelerants. I just feel more confident talking about comp sci vs poli sci.) I think this will be true for generative AI. Back in the 80s I thought that individuals and companies that invested in personal computers would leapfrog individuals and companies that ignored PCs. That turned out to be true, just as it was true for individuals and companies that embraced the Web. I think the same will hold for generative AI.

So don’t be like Linda: learn more about gen AI and do not confuse it with A1 sauce. 🙂 If it can help, I wrote a guide on it recently that could be worth your while to check out.

P.S. For anyone wondering, this post is my own and doesn’t necessarily represent IBM’s positions, strategies or opinions. For more on that, see IBM’s social media policy, which as an employee I follow.