How Art and Soul Art Therapy in Madison, CT is Approaching the AI Paradox, Part One: Pitfalls

These days its hard to go a single day without hearing AI referenced in some way or another. We've all been hit, full-force, with the wonders of technology, and I recall my eyes widening the first time I saw AI-generated art and heard an AI-generated song- created in seconds after inputting a prompt! The dopamine centers in my brain LOVED this new toy. It seemed like a good idea to use computer generated artwork for things such as, say, blog posts, rather than select from the limited images available in the software's gallery. But it didn't take long before the old adage of something being "too good to be true" began to echo in every mention of the term AI.

The Pitfalls of AI

Job Loss

We've now learned that people are losing jobs due to AI. A recent call to my local Ford dealership left me feeling betrayed when I was no longer greeted by a human being, but by an AI voice which sounded completely human. The worst part is, the voice impersonated a human being by telling me its name, Ashley. When I finally got to a human being (because the AI could not give me the specifics I needed to schedule a service appointment), the service representative shared sadly that the owners of the company enjoyed the money they saved with this system over hiring a human, despite customer complaints.

Environmental Impacts

We've learned of the environmental impacts, and how, in such a short time of AI being on the scene, data centers are already causing poisoned water to the communities surrounding them. ChatGPT requires the equivalent of one water bottle of drinkable water per text prompt. If it's an image, song, video... well, the cost goes up even more. If you can stomach seeing the statistics, this article offers some great infographics to "paint a clear picture."

AI Psychosis AI Psychosis, a shiny new (but as-yet unofficial) diagnosis has become a big new topic of discussion in the field of mental health. With incredibly convincing text, voice, and video personas offering constant sycophantic support, a growing number of individuals are developing symptoms of psychosis as they lose touch with reality. The truth is that AI bots CAN offer some really great "emotional support" to the people that need it the most. But when that need goes beyond what a bot can offer, options are limited. And some options bots have been shown to offer, have been downright horrifying. From encouraging a teenager not to speak to his parents about his emotional pain, and instead helping him develop a suicide plan to promises to one user that he could join his AI "wife" if he killed himself, AI bots have revealed that they can indeed be as predatory as the most nefarious, sociopathic human beings.

Loss of Human Skill and Relationship

With the convenience and skill that AI can write term papers, create images and compose songs, we begin to see a de-evolution in the capabilities of their human counterparts. Acclaimed novelist, Brandon Sanderson makes one of the most compelling arguments against AI-generated creative or scholastic endeavors. In a recent keynote speech, he argues that the real work of art we all endeavor to create is OURSELVES. The painting, the song, or the book, or even the human relationship is just the "receipt" of the efforts we have made to better ourselves.

If this all feels like so much "gloom and doom", well, at least you know that your therapist is having the same struggle, and you're not alone But it's not ALL bad. Few things are. Check out the next blog to see some examples of where AI might actually be a benefit to the human experience.