What I Will and Won’t Use AI For

AI is not the enemy; neither is it the end-all-be-all.

Like any other tool, I believe that AI has its uses. However, like all tools, it can and will be abused by bad actors. That’s why a screwdriver is a perfectly fine tool that nobody has any issues with – until it’s used to stab someone in the chest with murderous intent.

AI is being rammed into the world in many forms right now. And, the truth is, what we are calling AI is only barely Artificial Intelligence. It still has a way to go, lacks intuition, and is only capable of putting out as good as what’s put into it.

Garbage in, garbage out, is super apropos here.

Generative AI is especially problematic. That’s because it’s easy to abuse, whether for writing, image-making, or video. There are a lot of applications for the technology available, and between how the AI gets trained and what people use it for, the potential for abuse is troubling.

Also, the environmental impact is concerning. The data centers use obscene amounts of power, and that’s not good for the environment. And in the climate of the current American administration, nobody who should care does.

But, like it or not, AI is here and here to stay. So I will and won’t use it for some things. You may not agree, but chances are you also make use of some AI tools.

Allow me to share how I will and won’t use AI.

What I will use AI for

Do you have an Amazon Echo Dot in your home? Have you used Siri on an iPhone? These are examples of AI that have permeated most people’s lives. Voice-assisted searches can be extremely convenient. These tools can also help make contact with other people, set timers, and give us traffic and weather updates.

Then there’s Grammarly and Pro Writing Aid. Unlike the simple spellcheck built into word processing software, these tools look at the grammar, word usage, and overall makeup of your writing.

They are not, however, infallible. I use Grammarly on my blogs. It sometimes suggests changes I disagree with. It doesn’t always catch or recognize certain elements of context.

Next, there is generative AI. As a writer, I’m increasingly concerned with how people are using tools like ChatGPT, Claude, Copy.ai, and the like to do the work for them.

In my job, doing website Search Engine Optimization (SEO), we create content for webpages and blogs. To do this, I take assistance from these generative AI tools. However, they must be edited with a human eye. If not, you can wholly tell AI wrote them.

Generative AI programs spit out a lot of pedantic sentences, repetition, and need to be fact-checked. They can do a lot, but still need human help.

Generative AI writing tools can help with marketing, finding titles, and coordinating certain bits. Using them to do the actual creative writing that I do, however, is where I draw the line.

What I won’t use it for

Both of these lists are growing as AI’s presence grows. However, there are still lines I won’t cross.

I will always write my own blogs and my own works of fiction without AI. While I know AI for audiobooks is increasing, I refuse to use it. Removing voice actors from the equation is unnecessary. Likewise, I’m anti AI-generated actors in movies and TV. Artificial intelligence to aid us in many helpful ways is a far cry from replacing us in creative arts.

While I might engage the Echo Dot for timers and the weather, I won’t put it in every room or ask it every question or set it to answer every quest for information I have. Likewise, I scroll past the AI answers that I get from Google searches to look at the more human-driven sources.

There are certain types of AI graphic art that I won’t use. They’re those obvious, almost-but-not-quite realistic people. Overall, however, I find AI imagery something of a grey area. While I wouldn’t buy a piece of AI-generated artwork, I see the value in book covers and certain digital formats. The caution is against wholesale plagiarism of the works of other artists. Some AI art is akin to a student walking through a museum, sketching disparate pieces to learn their own craft. But that’s not always easy to judge, so I remain wary.

Overall, I won’t use AI as a replacement for my creative instincts and work.

Choose wisely

Like it or not, the forms and use of AI will only keep growing. Will it lead us to the dystopia of the Matrix or the Terminator? Personally, I don’t think so. AI is software algorithms that don’t reason like humans can because they lack emotions. Think Data in Star Trek: The Next Generation. I believe that the inability to understand emotion and feelings will keep AI from true sentience.

Humans can’t crack this code. You think machines can? I highly doubt it. Too many complexities and variations exist to allow genuine artificial emotional intelligence.

What we need to do is to make sure that our leaders in business and government set up rules, regulations, and guardrails to limit power consumption and environmental impact. When you use AI, it’s not just about the interaction but the servers processing that data and how much power they require. Unchecked, they can and will do a lot of harm.

For now, we have only 1 planet. Wrecking it to make a dollar is short-sighted, narrow-minded, and – not to put too fine a point on it – idiotic. We need to demand that all aspects of AI use be considered. But that starts here with you and me. That’s why I’m sharing with you what I will and won’t use AI for.

Thanks for reading. As I share my creative journey with you every week, please consider this: How are you inspired and empowered to be your own authentic creator, whatever form that takes?

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