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"What is my point in all this blather? The future is much closer than many of us think. Our education system is all tied up in knots right now. Instead of teaching skills for this ever developing future, we are more concerned in how our kids feel. How many genders there are. How to re-write our history."
Last night, while channel surfing on YouTube, I came across the Elon Musk interview where he sounded the alarm bells about AI. How AI, combined with robotics, is going to be a grave threat to mankind. He is convinced the "genie could get out of the bottle". Basically the same thing Hawking said before he died. That instead of AI being a boon to mankind, it could end up being the grim reaper instead. So, what does all this mean for today?
Absolutely nothing. Na-da. Development is continuing at a rocket's pace. Why? Many companies in many industrial countries are not seeing gloom and doom - instead, they are seeing the Golden Fleece. In fact China is so bent on getting the science of AI more matured, the Ministry of Education has mandated more AI classes be offered and research conducted at its universities. China would like to see additional AI breakthroughs coming out of its higher education facilities by 2020. Plus, by 2030, China would like 1/5 of all its manufacturing be done by automation. For China, that is a huge number!
Back to an article I wrote not too long ago. That for kids just starting Kindergarten today, 85% of the jobs which will exist when they graduate from high school, do not exist right now. China is aware of that. So is Japan. Our education system - not so much.
But what does that mean for folks who are working today? Who have maybe 20 years or more before retirement? Get ready for constant retraining folks. Chances are, you will be changing jobs and/or companies numerous times before you hang it up. Continuing education will also be part of the mix. Those who resist change will have problems. Those who embrace change, probably not so much. But in any event, the learning curve is going to be steep - change after change.
Most of us will have a chance to look down this rabbit hole in the very near future. Like in seven years or so. World changes will start in earnest by 2025, and accelerate from there. Our brave new world is going require us to be braver and bolder than we could have ever imagined. Will our brave new world be dystopian like Huxley predicted, or Utopian like we all hope for?
One interview I saw with an AI technologist was very interesting. When asked what the future will look like when AI becomes common in our everyday lives, he gave a surprising yet honest answer. He said he had no idea. Why? AI is a moving target. It might be part of everything, or part of just somethings. But have no doubt - it will have some part of our lives. Was he worried like Musk and Hawking that AI might end up being our master instead of our slave. Not too much.
What is my point in all this blather? The future is much closer than many of us think. Our education system is all tied up in knots right now. Instead of teaching skills for this ever developing future, we are more concerned in how our kids feel. How many genders there are. How to re-write our history. Meanwhile, kids in China, Japan and even India are getting ready for 2025 and beyond.
Meanwhile, I am excited about my Alexa. I recently read the developers are working on making the Alexa units conversational. That is a big jump in the AI technology. Why is that so important? If my wife gets mad at me, I will always have someone, or should I say something, to talk with.
Lucky me--I never had a career!
ReplyDeleteA few examples of AI use......
ReplyDeleteAI will shorten your commute via self-driving cars that result in up to 90% fewer accidents, more efficient ride sharing to reduce the number of cars on the road by up to 75%, and smart traffic lights that reduce wait times by 40% and overall travel time by 26%. Less use of our sacred oil reserves.
AI will be used to improve education in the future. One-size-fits-all classes may be replaced by personalized, adaptive learning that is tailored to each student’s individual strength and weaknesses. AI may also be used to identify at-risk students early on so that schools can focus extra resources on those students and decrease dropout rates. AI will be able to predict future job opps and route students through class selection to those jobs.
And for you wealthy Republican 1%'ers, AI can give you sound investing advice, by attempting to automate the best practices of seasoned investors and offer them to customers at a much lower cost than traditional fund managers.
AI-assistants, like your Echo device, while still not used by the majority of Americans, are rapidly spilling over into the mainstream.
Like the Bird, I believe as AI becomes more deeply integrated in our lives, it will become the new infrastructure powering a second industrial revolution.
I won't be around to see it, but I can envision it, and I think we'll be able to control it.
And with that said, I will retire to the basement and mindlessly absorb whatever content is available today on my newly acquired Oculus GO virtual reality headset. Love it, recommend it. Take dramamine if your just going to ride a bunch of roller coasters or pilot a spacecraft around the galazy.
DeleteWe are so f...ing behind the rest of the world...............
ReplyDeleteGermany launches world's first hydrogen-powered train
Two trains built by the French train maker Alstom are now operating on a 62 mile stretch of line in northern Germany.