AI-generated products are nothing new. But with programs like ChatGPT, Chai, and many others becoming more advanced, there is a growing number of cons that are beginning to surface. One of these is the debate over Artificial Intelligence taking over jobs that were once the lifeblood of certain industries, such as writers and artists. Another concern is that these engines are being used to cheat on school assignments, being able to forge papers and presentations with increasing reliability. On the more extreme side of the spectrum, there is an ongoing debate within NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) relating to AI and the ethics of its use in both traditional and cyber warfare. Many people say that artificial intelligence is the future, and many others say that AI will destroy our future.
Recently, a group of lawyers in New York recently used ChatGPT to generate their case involving the client being injured on an Avianca flight. Steven Schwartz an attorney under Levidow & Oberman, who has been a licensed attorney for three-plus decades was chosen to represent this case, along with Peter Loduca, two attorneys who specialized in personal injury cases. The resulting chaos ended up involving six bogus case citations, a fake vacation notice to cover for Schwartz, and a fine of $5,000 for each attorney involved. Later on, it was revealed that Schwartz had doubts about the language generator, and knowingly proceeded to use the false information it had produced, doubling down and not revealing the truth until far later in the case. Both he and his colleague ended up paying a total of $10,000 to the court, along with being mandated to release an apology to their client.
“…even though we may understand how to build perfectly safe general purpose AI, what’s to stop Dr. Evil building general purpose AI that’s going to destroy the world?”-Stuart Russel (CNN/Peg Skorpinski)
There have also been talks within NATO about the ethical concerns of using artificial intelligence in warfare. The main points of contention have been in regard to the level of autonomy, the morality of putting robots on the battlefield against humans, and the evidence that Russia is already doing this. The potential of AI being applied in cyberwarfare is also a pertinent threat from both sides, being used for infiltration of infrastructure and the internet or the management of weapons systems. From killer drones to biological weaponry, to cyberspace security, the possibilities are endless.
AI generative programs have been taking the world by storm over the last few years, with image generators, text generators, and even AI chatbots becoming more popular than ever. These have also become the subject of controversy, from issues with image generation sites stealing artwork to a major surge in cheating allegations throughout schools across the U.S. and beyond. Reportedly there have also been claims of misinformation in regards to the text generators, generating fake information in response to some questions.
What all this will end up meaning in future years is still unknown, but as the AI technology field continues to grow, only time will tell. For now, we can only speculate.
