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There have been too many times where I was discussing something about a product - and the next thing I know, it is in my recommended browser on my iPhone or laptop. The question "Is the government listening to me?" has been a recent question over the past few years as more people began to notice that their algorithms were matching up with something they said or looked up.
Artificial Intelligience (AI), is demonstrated by machines that are programmed to think like humans and mimic their actions or any machine that exhibits traits associated with the human mind like learning or problem-solving. AI runs on and is fueled by data, and it continues to grow every day. I remember when the car Tesla first came out and everybody thought it was basically the future. Now, I see Tesla's everywhere I go. The growth of AI is rapidly increasing as the world now relies more on digital technology. The thought of AI is fascinating to many but also leaves some skeptical.
As we browse through Google, we are allowing Google to hold records of our browsing history, GPS location, and data. All those times when we are on websites and before we are allowed to continue we have to "accept the cookies" - that is basically how we are getting advertisements targeted to us while on different websites. Google takes our browsing history and compiles an algorithm in a recommended column on our browser. Since I am an avid online shopper, if I am looking at dresses on a specific website, later on, I will be shown a selection of dresses in the side bar of a different website. This is where the question of whether or not the government is listening to us comes in. I personally believe that Google complying with all of my browsing histories is a little creepy, and I can't help but wonder where else it is being shared. As AI evolves, it increases the ability to use personal information in ways that intrude on privacy interests.
Amazon's Alexa is another controversy that has many questioning if it is storing out information and voices. Technically, Amazon's Alexa is always listening. Alexa does hold our data based on what we ask her to do but it goes a little bit beyond getting advertisements on our browsers. Alexa knows our shopping lists, our music, and uses it as a marketing strategy to direct Amazon products to us.
It is also a little unsettling that facial recognition is used for so much today. In China, facial recognition is used for nearly everything and they even pay with it. Apple came out with facial recognition that allows users to unlock their phones and purchases all through a simple smile. To many, this feels like an invasion of privacy, but Apple and iPhone still continue to be widely used. AI leaves many worrying about taking labor away from humans. Wired magazine analyses the way AI changes and advances. Wired believes that AI will most definitely start to take jobs away from people within the next few years
While there are many factors of AI that leave us skeptical, there are also benefits to AI. AI is advancing to learn how to stop cyber threats and identity breaches. As we give websites our information, phone number, email, etc., we are increasing the risk of spam/threats to our privacy. AI is programmed to recognize when there is a threat to our security and stop it before it happens. Another positive of AI is that it helps cure deadly diseases such as cancer, by using advanced technology to be able to detect a cancerous cell.
Artificial Intelligence is not going anywhere anytime soon, but as the world continues to grow in digital technology at different speeds, we can understand patterns and what to look out for. The world is turning digital and new inventions are constantly coming out, but I believe that artificial intelligence is here to stay.
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