Next Mo Gawdat pulls us into the tangled mess of AI ethics, and guess what? It’s not the robots making it complicated—it’s us. He asks the big, squirm-inducing questions: Who decides what’s ethical for AI? What’s “right” when the world can’t even agree on pizza toppings?
Gawdat dives into some important historical milestones. Remember the 2018 debate over autonomous cars and the infamous “trolley problem”? Should a self-driving car save its passenger or a pedestrian? Spoiler: there’s no universal answer because ethics isn’t one-size-fits-all. Different cultures, laws, and moral compasses make this a minefield. And here’s the kicker: AI will need to make these decisions in real time. No pressure.
The main point? AI needs a moral code, and since it learns from us, we need to sort out our ethical mess first. You know, no big deal—just rewrite humanity’s rulebook.
And what about privacy? If you weren’t already side-eyeing your phone, Chapter 7 will have you wrapping it in tinfoil. Gawdat doesn’t mince words: AI thrives on data, and we’re giving it away faster than toddlers with candy at Halloween. Every click, like, and Google search is basically fuel for AI’s growth—and not just the friendly kind. Check out my AI post written in March 2023, those Catcha programs… well, yah, they’ve gotcha!!
Mo reminds us of 2013’s Snowden revelations, when the world found out governments were vacuuming up data like it was going out of style. Fast forward to today, and it’s not just governments; corporations are in the game too. From your shopping habits to your ahem late-night YouTube spirals, AI knows you better than your best friend. Creepy? Absolutely. Important to understand? 100%.
Finally, there’s the AI arms race, which is less about who’s the smartest and more about who controls the future. In 2017, China announced its plan to dominate AI by 2030. Meanwhile, Silicon Valley is already miles ahead in development, and smaller nations are quietly jumping in with their own algorithms.
This isn’t just about innovation; it’s about power. Gawdat paints a picture of nations racing to build superintelligence without fully understanding the consequences. Think Cold War, but with algorithms instead of nukes. The rush to be first could result in unintended disasters—AI that’s too powerful, too fast, and not fully thought through.
The Big Picture: A Warning and a Call to Action
- Fact: AI learns from us, and we’re currently terrible teachers.
- Fact: Our data is the fuel AI needs, and we’re giving it away for free.
- Fact: Nations are rushing to build AI supremacy, often ignoring the ethical and societal consequences.
Gawdat’s bottom line? It’s not too late to course-correct. But we need to act now—globally, collectively, and with a clear understanding of what’s at stake. Ethics, privacy, and collaboration aren’t optional anymore; they’re survival tools in the age of AI.
If humanity doesn’t step up, we’re handing over the keys to a machine that’s learning faster than we ever imagined. And trust me, it won’t stop to ask for directions.
