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Our Technology Fears Are Overrated
With all the hype around Artificial Intelligence, specifically Generative AI like ChatGPT, Claude and Microsoft pumping out Copilot, all the screens everywhere and the daily deluge of the technology industry, it’s reasonable to think technology is overtaking our world. Sort of, but not really.
The reality is, there’s so much digital technologies out there, so much data, that it’s actually a complete and utter mess. In fact, it’s so horribly messy and discombobulated that anything like Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) and the idea of SkyNet and the beloved dystopian tropes of science-fiction are almost impossible to achieve. Why?
Let’s start within the technology industry itself. While technology giants like Microsoft, Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon may seem to hold technological sway over society, and while they may be economic juggernauts, they’re actually locked in fierce competition. The result is hindering a lot of potential advancements. And product roll-outs that aren’t really ready for prime-time but are needed for stock price boosts.
You might be surprised to learn that much of the code that underlies Facebook is well over two decades old. That the code driving much of the new interface is a little more advanced, but is a constant battle for Facebook software engineers to contend with.
