It is said that AI will revolutionize the world around us and the way we live. Yes, this is probably very true. From how we do groceries, to our job, ending with to who we marry. After the polemics on the elections of Donald Trump as USA president, it seems that also the politic systems are not immune to the super power of artificial intelligence. It is indeed easy to imagine the repercussions of the use of AI and machine learning in the political scene. AI algorithms can influence vote fraud, disrupt the way propaganda is currently made by politicians, and hugely affect decision making processes in the context of fiscal and monetary policy.

Yet, everybody is so focused on the impact that AI can have on people that we tend to forget the impact that some people can have on AI. And it is on this ‘some’ that I would like the attention to be focused, as most likely I will not have any influence on super intelligent machines, but governments surely will. In a holistic consideration of how AI is created and programmed, governments will have a say. A big one. Both for power interest and security reasons, States cannot leave super advanced technologies take over without their supervision and, more precisely, their almost total control. As a proof, government and intelligence agencies are already closely monitoring AI developments. Indeed, if AI is powerful, Governments are too, and stakes are too high for them to stay out of it. For that reason, chances are that any important AI project will either be directly funded by the State or belong to an institution closely linked to it. And, even if it wouldn’t be the case, Government entities can have influence on basically anything one can think about. Now, this wouldn’t be a problem if politicians were all honest and caring about citizens’ good. But, looking back at both old and modern history, we all know that this is true in theory but not in practice.

Let’s switch the direction of our logic and try to think about the influence that politics may have on AI, instead of the way around. We are so busy wondering whether AI will be a friendly or unfriendly entity that we forget that AI will not program itself. And as much as programmers can identify themselves as independent thinkers, there’s no way they can avoid being influenced, consciously or subconsciously, by political climate and ideologies. Thus, friendliness of AI towards the human kind is a political and institutional problem as much as an algorithmic one. How would you secure AI fairness when its roots are not?

References

Brannen, R. (2016). Politics Is Upstream of AI. [online] The Future Primaeval. Available at: https://thefutureprimaeval.net/politics-is-upstream-of-ai/ [Accessed 14 Oct. 2018].

Artificial Intelligence is probably the greatest revolution of our, not so far, future. By now, there are no doubts that AI can improve the quality of people’s everyday life from basically all angles. Yet, the human kind is now facing its toughest challenge: making up for the damages that it has perpetuated to planet Earth. Although the imminence and the urgency of a more sustainable footprint of humans on the environment are known, the means through which this environmentally-friendly outcomes will be achieved is still highly debated. Can AI, with its exceptional implications, contribute to pursue this goal? If so, to what extent? And how?

To start with, AI will change the structure of urban areas and make cities smart, by reducing CO2 emissions and air quality and introducing autonomous electric vehicles which will enable on-demand mobility. Also, when one of the biggest problems is traditional energy shortage, AI can be implemented to reduce the imbalance between supply and demand of renewable energy, allowing its spreading and scaling worldwide. In the context of food production, AI-augmented agricultural systems will optimize processes so as to reduce to the minimum both resource inputs and resource waste. Lastly, AI-powered digital geospatial platforms will monitor and model environmental systems in a way that will allow scientists to manage deforestation, water extraction, and air pollution in order to protect fauna and flora. Moreover, on the same line, AI can help saving human lives. Artificial intelligence can make the difference in all contexts: from the workplace, where AI can use predictive maintenance systems and replace individuals for dangerous activities, to disaster emergencies, during which AI-enabled simulations and real time data gathering will help avoiding catastrophes.

It is therefore undeniable that AI will play a fundamental role in coping with what is said to be the toughest challenge the human kind has ever faced, as those are only some examples of the extraordinary applications of AI for a better future world. Nonetheless, at this point, a question should pop into the reader’s head: is there a limit? And, if so, where is the limit? If artificial intelligence is infinite and limitless, then it is up to humans to decide where and when to stop it. AI applications, and consequent benefits, are clearly revolutionary, but the most foolish thing humans can do is to overlook the consequences that AI’s spreading may have in the long term. Would you know where to draw the line?

References:

World Economic Forum. (2018). 8 ways AI can help save the planet. [online] Available at: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/01/8-ways-ai-can-help-save-the-planet/ [Accessed 3 Oct. 2018].

Daisyme, P. and Daisyme, P. (2018). 5 Unexpected Ways AI Can Save the World by Due. [online] Due. Available at: https://due.com/blog/unexpected-ways-ai-can-save-the-world/ [Accessed 3 Oct. 2018].