Commencement Boos for AI Platitudes

Source Domain: nautil.us

Recent university commencement speeches by prominent figures like Eric Schmidt and Gloria Caulfield have portrayed artificial intelligence (AI) as the next major societal transformation, similar to the Industrial Revolution.
Students are reacting negatively to these speeches, expressing concern over the implications of an AI advance for their future, including job displacement, climate impact, and societal disruption.
Despite acknowledging the hype around AI’s transformative power, the article reflects on the historical drawbacks of previous technological revolutions like the Industrial Revolution, including economic inequality and environmental degradation.
The text highlights current environmental concerns about AI data centers, such as increased local temperatures, high water usage, and significant CO2 emissions.
There are warnings about broader societal issues arising from AI, hinting at potential biases, ethical concerns, and the impact on human consciousness.
The author remains hopeful that humanity will find a sustainable and ethical use for AI, but cautions that uncritical acceptance without scrutiny of its negatives merits skepticism from graduates.