Top 3 Controversial AI Topics in 2024

AI Riddle:

The more you take, the more you leave behind.
What am I?

Today’s Motive:

This one is a little longer than most of the content published on Mellowmotive. These topics are condensed versions of broader social and political issues arising in AI.

While some of these issues may feel like AI walls closing in, the sun will always rise, and humanity will always find a way. We always do.

AI Ethics

😟 Ethical Concerns Over Lethal Autonomous Weapons (LAWs).

 🤖 The advent of Lethal Autonomous Weapons (LAWs), often referred to as "killer robots," has sparked significant ethical debates globally.

In 2024, the discourse around these weapons has intensified due to advancements in AI and robotics, which bring both strategic military advantages and profound ethical dilemmas.

Summary:

• Lethal Autonomous Weapons (LAWs) are currently being utilized. The conflict between Ukraine and Russia has become a focal point for AI systems in warfare.

• Various countries, including the United States and China, have made strides in developing and deploying these systems.

• The United States and China have developed autonomous drones capable of uniform swarm attacks without human intervention.

• A paper published in the Journal of Military Ethics argues that delegating life-and-death decisions to machines fundamentally undermines the moral responsibility that should govern the use of force in conflict.

• The rapid development and deployment of LAWs in 2024 have also heightened fears of an arms race as countries seek to outpace each other in AI-driven warfare capabilities. From the VCDNP.

• In statement form the Congressional Research Service, approximately 30 countries an additional 165 nongovernmental organizations want to ban LAWs due to ethical concerns and accountability issues.

• "The technologies that will be used in autonomous weapons will reduce people to data and subject them to attack - the ultimate form of digital dehumanization." From stopkillerrobots.org.

The Motive:

The development and deployment of Lethal Autonomous Weapons (LAWs) present significant ethical, legal, and strategic challenge.

Current issues include the delegation of life-and-death decisions to AI systems, which undermines moral responsibility in conflict and risks dehumanizing targets by reducing them to mere data.

The lack of clear accountability for actions taken by autonomous weapons further complicates matters.

Future concerns involve an escalating arms race among nations seeking to dominate AI-driven warfare, potentially lowering the threshold for conflict and amplifying risks of biased or discriminatory targeting by AI systems.

I wonder if I’ll see a future where political figures use fear tactics on society in an effort to push LAWs upon us to enhance our security and safety. Will this make our lives better?

AI Ethics

💸 The Controversy Over Unemployment and Inequality from AI.

 💥 There is a mixed bag of viewpoints when it comes to future labor markets and the impact of AI.
Proponents, particularly those creating AI, seem to favor a side where AI will replace many jobs but create many new ones.
Critics argue that AI will result in significant job losses, with far fewer new job opportunities than the optimists suggest.

Summary:

• Top CEOs in the tech sector have indicated that careers involving coding, data entry, analysis, programming, administrative duties, and more will become obsolete in the near future.

• Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia, stated just the other month that coders will no longer be required in the coming years.

• The World Economic Forum has estimated that artificial intelligence will replace some 85 million jobs in next few years. The optimistic stance is that 97 million new roles will be created from AI, signifying a profound labor transformation.

• 65% of retail jobs could be automated in the coming years, driven by technological advancements, rising costs, wages, tight labor markets, and reduced consumer spending. Source here.

• Advanced economies may see up to 60% of jobs impacted by AI integration. Conversely, the effect in emerging markets and low-income countries is expected to be around 40% and 26%, respectively. From the International Monetary Fund.

• Plus, there is the upcoming impact of humanoids within the job market. Many believe the humanoid opportunity is far bigger than most think.
  A prediction of a $30 trillion global labor market and a humanoid population of around 8 million units by 2040, having a $357 billion wage impact.

The Motive:

The discourse surrounding AI's impact on employment and income inequality remains polarized. While AI promises new job creation, the risk of widespread job displacement and the need for significant workforce reskilling cannot be overlooked.

I have worked for several corporations, and if there is a chance to shrink their workforce, they will. Corps are always finding ways to cut costs, and one of the biggest hits to profits is labor. Many corporations will cut costs, and they may use AI to do just that.

AI doesn't take breaks, receive paid vacations, will never require medical benefits, and never retire.

I lean on the pessimistic side of this one. Too many times, I have witnessed companies find ways to lower expenses, stay competitive, and enhance shareholder value. It has become the nature of business.

Many individuals in AI leadership positions claim people can foster new life-long learning attitudes by learning new skills and changing careers. Tell that to the middle-aged debt-burdened parent.

AI Ethics

🖼️ The Proliferation of Deepfakes.

 📷️ The rise of AI-generated images and videos is ushering in a new era of digital manipulation for which many are unprepared.

Summary:

• Until recently, most deepfake videos were easy to identify. Clips were plagued with awkward facial movements, mismatched voices, and morphing images throughout the video.

• Things are beginning to change, and AI video/images will improve over time.

• Today, anyone can access AI technology, no longer requiring one to master programs like Photoshop to create deceptive content.

• Want to remove/place yourself in a family photo? You can do that with just a few taps on your phone, thus changing how we view the past through images.

• A BBC article highlighted the investigation of sexually explicit deepfakes in schools and chatgroups. Students use AI to create sexually explicit content by superimposing real women's faces onto AI-generated bodies without their consent.

• As people upload their images to social media, their images become targets to anyone with malicious intent.

• Recently, the Grok image generator running on X/twitter has come under fire for lax guidelines regarding image generation. People have come up with all sorts of creations, like political figures holding weapons to snorting cocaine.

An example of an image created using Grok-2, but not allowed in other AI image generators. Perhaps these two will hug it out one day.

• In contrast, other AI image generators like Midjourney and Dall-E 3 will not allow the image creation of political figures during campaign season.

• U.S. lawmakers are working on ways to establish regulations for AI-generated content to fight disinformation and sexually explicit deepfakes.

• The European Union introduced risk-based regulations for artificial intelligence back on August 1st, with full implementation slated for 2026.

• These regulations include AI transparency obligations, such as informing users when they are interacting with AI chatbots, AI-generated content is clearly identifiable, and mandating that AI-generated text or video intended for public information be labeled as AI.

The Motive:

While some find it fun and amusing to create deepfakes, there is a critical need for policies and regulations to restrict certain types of AI-generated content.

U.S. lawmakers are drafting new regulations over sexually explicit AI images and videos. However, the extent to which these efforts will be successful remains uncertain.

Although some deepfake videos and images are clearly fabricated and intended as humor, it is imperative to establish clear boundaries to prevent the creation and distribution of AI-generated content that can cause harm to others.

The unfortunate reality is that creating new laws and passing them takes time and effort, especially when we need to get them right from the beginning, and it takes no time at all to create harmful AI images with rude intentions.

We are currently in a time where AI is advancing too fast and policy makers are playing catch up.