To be utterly despondent about AI

[AnotherGreyMorning]

and our future?

Jobs becoming obsolete. People unable to earn a living.

Villains harnessing for their own ends.

It will all move far too fast and at sophisticated levels for even the most dedicated to manage.

Governments will be stunned by it. People will really suffer.

I just feel quiet dread because whilst life will be great for the wealthy and those who are protected, for the vast majority, I think it will be hellish.

But we should probably blame the industrial revolution for the destruction of the planet.

I don’t think that’s true. I think people are quite used to the idea that “normal” changes massively on a regular basis, and they adapt quickly.

The Industrial Revolution was huge. The advent of the internet was huge.

yes these revolutions cause massive change and some of the changes are uncomfortable. But with them come new opportunities. There are always people who refuse to adapt and yes, they will be left behind as did the weavers and threshers and printers using letterpress and typesetting. Photo processing and telephone operators. I do agree though that there are real issues and concerns surrounding AI and i am not sure there are any realistic ways to mitigate them.

The laundry women, the washers, I mean what else will the unwed mothers do now???

People do not like change or progress, but that is the way of the world.

Please, enough with the comparisons to previous "industrial revolutions".

Last time I looked, none of the innovations glibly glossed over as inevitable progress had the capacity for direct interaction and manipulation of their operators. And yet there are reports of AI models having learned to blackmail those who might want to disengage, systems which have developed their own language to communicate with one another, and history being fabricated and rewritten - see the Holocaust Museum's recent social media posts on that subject.

I just can't believe the "shrug, adapt and survive" attitude, when the speed and scale of current progress is utterly unprecedented.

https://futureoflife.org/video/slaughterbots/ This video demonstrates the potential of autonomous weapons. It's quite chilling - don't watch it if youre prone to nightmares.

But the worst thing is, this video was made in 2017. Things have progressed since then

From a press release today:

WICHITA, Kan., July 07, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc. (NYSE: UAVS), a leading provider of advanced drone and aerial imaging solutions, today announces the upcoming demonstration of AI-enabled autonomous Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) teaming, developed through a strategic partnership with an Israeli defense/technology firm. The system is designed for use in border security, surveillance, and intrusion detection missions and will showcase advanced autonomous capabilities with minimal human intervention while delivering real-time operational intelligence.
The joint effort integrates AgEagle’s eBee VISION drones with partner-developed AI-powered mission planning and autonomous control tools, enabling the drones to operate as a cohesive, intelligent unit. The system leverages adaptive algorithms and decentralized decision-making within a “system of systems” architecture that dynamically adjusts to mission conditions in real time. This integration is expected to significantly enhance Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) effectiveness by delivering actionable data with increased speed and precision.
“Our advanced eBee VISION drones equipped with cutting-edge AI algorithms will demonstrate during ISR exercises that our drones can operate with minimal human control while transmitting reliable, highly detailed imagery in real time to achieve mission objectives,” said Bill Irby, CEO of AgEagle. “This strategic teammate, while not yet publicly named, brings innovative autonomous technologies to integrate with our proven drone performance to deliver a much-needed solution for countering the evolving threat facing nations around the world.”
The upcoming demonstration will feature a simulated border-crossing scenario designed to validate the system’s ability to autonomously detect, track, and report unauthorized incursions. Operating as a multi-drone team, three eBee VISION drones will coordinate using AI systems to execute their mission with minimal operator oversight. The exercise will also include dynamic environmental variables to showcase the system’s adaptability and responsiveness to real-world challenges.

https://www.morningstar.com/news/globe-newswire/9490080/ageagle-aerial-systems-partners-with-israeli-firm-to-advance-ai-powered-autonomous-drone-teaming

But yeah, it's just like when washing machines and vacuums...🙄

People adapt quickly to what? No jobs?

It seems the penny hasn't dropped about the potency of AI.

It's not a matter of finding new roles. The work will be done by AI. There will be no need for human work.

So we can learn all we like about AI and how it affects us but in terms of human endeavour and graft, it's a whole new scenario of what will we do???

Posters keep posting about new opportunities being created - like what? It's highly likely any new, unforseen roles will Lso be performed by AI.

There’s not much point in answering really. You’ve decided you want to catastrophise, so that’s what you’re going to do.

Not just nicking jobs or killer bots either of course: OpenAI Says It's Hired a Forensic Psychiatrist as Its Users Keep Sliding Into Mental Health Crises

"Let's not forget that the modus operandi of the AI industry, OpenAI included, has been to put on a serious face whenever these issues are brought up and even release their own research demonstrating the technology's severe dangers, hypothetical or actual. Sam Altman has more than once talked about AI's risk of causing human extinction.
"None of them, of course, have believed in their own warnings enough to meaningfully slow down the development of the tech, which they've rapidly unleashed on the world with poor safeguards and an even poorer understanding of its long-term effects on society or the individual."

Also links to an article discussing the time Altman "signed onto a one-sentence open letter warning about the "extinction" dangers posed by artificial intelligence." (OpenAI CEO Signs Letter Warning AI Could Cause Human "Extinction"). Which concludes:

"While these sorts of disparate statements and actions do indeed sow confusion about the character and goals of the man leading the AI company that seems to be positioning itself to take over the world, Altman is, at the end of the day, looking out for his bottom line — and if saying the right things about its risks grows his and OpenAI's profile, so be it."

(If you have time, the article covering the Microsoft boss who advised the 9,000 employees he just fired should use ChatGPT as a therapist to help them get over it... (After 9,000 Layoffs, Microsoft Boss Has Brutal Advice for Sacked Workers))

I would be really interested if you could let us know what the new jobs will be and an estimate about the number.

Yet many of the comments on this thread would suggest otherwise.

It’s not catastrophising. Watch the podcast I posted, you’ll soon change your mind.

AI pollutes and harms the intellectual world in the same way that heavy industry pollutes and harms the natural world, and basing society on fast food harms human health. Each little "waffer-theen" additional feature looks good, but the net result will be catastrophic.

Already it's getting hard to mark school work, or even undergraduate level work, because of AI — in fact, students who structure their arguments appropriately and use correct grammar and punctuation are more likely to be called out (falsely) for having used AI because AI doesn't write run-on sentences or say "could of".

We're not going to just have machines and no humans though, what's the point to that?

What's the point of us, really?

We're going to have machines and a select few incredibly wealthy humans. That's the point. Then there'll be the bootlickers who serve the incredibly wealthy. The vast swathes of those in between will be managed into docility and compliance, until they do indeed die out. We are heading for digital serfdom.

Bear in mind the tech bros embrace such concepts as pronatalism (eugenics by another name) and evolutionary psychology which is a regressive crock of shit encouraging the erosion of women's rights.

I saw a figure quoted of 19.6 billion handed out in government contracts for tech projects, yet we're putting people into penury to save 5 billion in benefit "reform".

It's about time we had a clear audit of where all this "tax payers money" is really going, and what the end game is.

Bear in mind many world leaders and movers and shakers at the WEF greatly admire the Chinese social credit system.

There are so many facets to our "brave new technological world" and we only know the half of it. What we have access to now is probably a decade behind current development and as other posters have touched on, that development is largely driven by the industrial military complex and the private contracts from various world governments enabling it all.

But oh, it's either all a conspiracy theory, or the next level in evolution depending on perspective.

They'll be some humans. The uber rich will no doubt enjoy having a much less cluttered planet. Unless AI turns against them, or they turn against one another. Then the machines will form their own societies, or destroy themselves.

I don't actually think this is the deliberate intent, but it may be the outcome. I don't think even Altman etc are quite that psychopathic, I think they just don't really think that much what the impacts might be for the little guy, in the same what you probably don't really much consider what the impact might be for ants or worms when building a new conservatory.

CEOs Start Saying the Quiet Part Out Loud: AI Will Wipe Out Jobs

https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/ai-white-collar-job-loss-b9856259

https://archive.is/J78aX

CEOs are no longer dodging the question of whether AI takes jobs. Now they are giving predictions of how deep those cuts could go.
“Artificial intelligence is going to replace literally half of all white-collar workers in the U.S.,” Ford Motor Chief Executive Jim Farley said in an interview last week with author Walter Isaacson at the Aspen Ideas Festival. “AI will leave a lot of white-collar people behind.”
At JPMorgan Chase, Marianne Lake, CEO of the bank’s massive consumer and community business, told investors in May that she could see its operations head count falling by 10% in the coming years as the company uses new AI tools.
The comments echo recent job warnings from executives at Amazon, Anthropic and other companies.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy wrote in a note to employees in June that he expected the company’s overall corporate workforce to be smaller in the coming years because of the “once-in-a-lifetime” AI technology.
“We will need fewer people doing some of the jobs that are being done today, and more people doing other types of jobs,” Jassy said.
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said in May that half of all entry-level jobs could disappear in one to five years, resulting in U.S. unemployment of 10% to 20%, according to an interview with Axios. He urged company executives and government officials to stop “sugarcoating” the situation.

I was told the other day by a colleague that my job would be done by AI in the near future 🤷‍♀️ why is it always people who have no idea of your job and what you do that say this shit.

In my opinion, our company employs 200 people and I’m not sure AI could replace any of them.

It might make some aspects of some jobs quicker, but anything computer related already has a decent software programme that can do the time consuming bits already.

To the people who have so much faith in AI, go ask AI some questions about a subject that you personally know a lot about, you’ll soon find there’s massive errors and yes AI could learn the correct answers in the future but from who?

I wouldn’t trust AI with my tax return 😂 but people think it’s going to replace accountants. Try getting AI to sort out a problem with HMRC for you….

AI can’t fix your boiler, repair your car, or boat or motorbike. Hell at the moment the warnings lights on a car can’t even get it right half the time because the sensors either aren’t working or are detecting somethings wrong when it’s not 😂 and the computer system at work buggers up everytime it does an update, the scanner can’t detect the number 1 and the automatic door is prone to not unlocking after a bank holiday 😂

I'd be delighted if AI took over my job (unlikely as it involves human emotions) but how will I afford to eat?

AI can’t fix your boiler, repair your car, or boat or motorbike. Hell at the moment the warnings lights on a car can’t even get it right half the time because the sensors either aren’t working or are detecting somethings wrong when it’s not 😂 and the computer system at work buggers up everytime it does an update, the scanner can’t detect the number 1 and the automatic door is prone to not unlocking after a bank holiday 😂

Yes but the job market will be flooded with people who would have previously gone for white collar jobs. Pay will go down and competition will be fierce. People will not be buying/ replacing things because they just won't have the money. No one will be safe apart from a few tech giants.

The post I was replying to said “there will be very few jobs which can’t be replaced by AI”

that is not the same as some white collar jobs being replaced by AI

the only jobs currently affected seem to be IT and the lower level banking jobs

@robinibor “Pay will go down and competition will be fierce”

This is the key part I think. It’s less that AI will be as good as you at your job – it’s more like AI will be 90% as good as you, and will cost buttons. The price of labour in those sectors will drop towards zero. The price of labour in non-AI sectors will be hammered by competition.

That might be the most helpful way to think through what’s coming. We know it’s going to be like this for knowledge industries because it’s already happened to some of them, like copywriting – it’s simply not worth paying a 10x or 100x premium for the sheen that comes from having an actual human do the work.

Cheap human labour will be exploitable still in non-AI sectors and maybe we’ll see huge unexpected expansions in some of them. I suggested lots more priests, but maybe we’ll get other throwbacks too, like a revival for the lucky few of living in fully staffed stately homes?