Artificial Intelligence (AI) Myths, Debunked

On July 26, 2024 By Zi Yuan Wong

AI has recently seen increased publicity in the wake of OpenAI releasing ChatGPT, bringing AI to the attention of the public and taking the world by storm. Its release has online users discussing the wider possibilities of AI, and many are wondering what will happen to everyday life if AI development continues unimpeded. With the amount of information available on the web aiming to explain AI to daily users, there is bound to be unfounded information about AI that may misinform the same users. This article aims to debunk some myths about AI that are prevalent during online discussion.

What exactly is AI?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a broad term encompassing multiple disciplines that aim to make computer systems more human-like in making decisions and solving issues. One of the most prominent applications of AI in recent times is ChatGPT which uses generative AI to form original responses to queries asked by users in a human-like fashion.

Other than ChatGPT, multiple applications we use today have some form of AI technology built into them. These include search engines like Google, recommendation systems used by companies like YouTube to recommend similar content, virtual assistants like Alexa, e-commerce platforms, smart living, and autonomous driving.

Debunking Common Myths of AI

Due to the wide possibilities of AI, stories are bound to crop up on their potential usage. Here are some of the most prevalent myths about AI and whether the claims about them are true or not.

1. Only intelligent people know how to use AI.

False.

Despite AI being widely considered a sophisticated technology, its influence goes beyond the research lab. Without users being aware of it, AI has been and currently remains a staple in their daily lives. For example, modern computer systems include some form of AI in their programming in the form of applications like speech and face recognition, recommendation systems, and personal assistants. These applications aim to remove technological barriers for users with the aim of making their lives more convenient, ushering in a change in the way people live and interact with technology.

2. AI can solve every human problem.

False.

Online sensationalist news articles may report that AI can accelerate innovation and political manifestos promising a future “AI Revolution”, this paints an unrealistic picture on what can AI accomplish for humanity. “AI Solutionism,” as described by researchers, is a belief that all of humanity’s issues can be resolved by machine learning systems if provided enough data and many prominent figures that believe in it understate the complexity needed to deploy these systems in real life.

Neural networks, for example, are expected to only help in analyzing large volumes of data for decision-making purposes and are not responsible for making decisions on behalf of governments. There are limits to current AI systems and they are not a silver bullet for all world issues, and it requires actual effort by governments to resolve issues that they expect AI to solve.

3. AI and Machine Learning mean the same thing.

False.

AI and Machine Learning are related in concept, but both refer to entirely different things. Machine Learning is considered one of the subsets of AI while AI covers a broad set of techniques linked to computer engineering, ranging from Natural Language Processing to Machine Learning. In addition, machine learning applies AI to allow computer systems to learn autonomously without human input while AI is used to refer to disciplines that are responsible for developing systems to be human-like in decision making and problem solving.

4. AI will make humans obsolete

False.

While AI has recently advanced to the point of performing admirably in increasingly complex tasks like playing Go and team-based gaming, they still lack the ability to reliably form new creations like humans and in the case of DALL-E, only create new ‘art’ through recognizing patterns derived from other human-created art. While the potential of AI cannot be understated and whether they can surpass human intelligence is now a matter of “when”, for now, their practical usage remains narrow and would not completely render humans obsolete for the foreseeable future.

5. AI will replace all human labor.

It depends.

Despite the advancements of AI, its application is still limited to simple tasks which are done one at a time, meaning it will not completely replace human jobs yet. Even when the more repetitive jobs will eventually be replaced by automation, jobs that require human traits like creativity and innovation will remain. Instead, AI may help augment and complement specific kinds of roles that still require human involvement. In the healthcare sector, AI has been used in detecting diseases faster compared to radiologists.