Artificial intelligence has become a topic of heated debate. News headlines warn that AI is coming for our jobs and will overshadow our creativity. We often hear that an AI takeover will wipe out humanity or make us non-existent. While some see artificial intelligence as a threat, others see it as a miracle.
The truth remains somewhere in between, as the line between what is true and what is exaggerated grows thinner with each passing day.
As a writer with over two decades of experience, I have witnessed technological shifts that have changed the way we communicate. I have stored files on floppy disks that Gen Z may never have used. I was also among those who used a CD burner to copy large files. This device has also been deprecated.
I have witnessed the transition of writers from typewriters to computers, from libraries to search engines, and from printed manuscripts to cloud-based collaboration. Every innovation initially met with resistance, but the tools introduced only made tasks easier and more manageable.
The concerns we have about artificial intelligence today are akin to the reaction and reaction people had to automobiles, the Ford Model T, first introduced by Henry Ford in 1908. For years, horses were the primary form of transportation. Then came the car that was faster and more efficient. It did not eliminate the need for human decision-making; it changed the way people traveled.
AI presents a similar shift for authors, writers, computer programmers and graphic designers. AI can generate ideas, summarize information, suggest headings, improve grammar and even help structure a manuscript. These properties are impressive; however, they do not make the AI a writer. AI should only be seen as a tool to facilitate thinking and decision-making. This may be difficult for writers reading this article to digest.
A tool does not contain imagination, nor can it process thought. It has no memories, feelings or lived experiences. It collects input when people enter their prompts, queries or questions. Through millions of prompts, AI systems generate cultural understanding or opinions that may differ among users spread around the world pursuing different perspectives, ideologies, and experiences. However, an AI system cannot explore heartbreak or sadness, celebrate happiness or success, or define feelings or emotions as they are. These qualities relate to people and are thoroughly reflected in their writing.
In fact, AI can make the writing process efficient. It can help writers overcome writer’s block, explore alternative perspectives, refine drafts, and identify weaknesses in their literary work. When used judiciously, AI acts as a research assistant or an editor. The danger for writers is not AI, but how they use it. It will be unethical if authors use the answers from AI without any kind of editing. The answers are just the AI’s suggestions for the answer, which should be edited, rewritten and thoroughly analyzed.
In bowing to AI, risk writers risk surrendering their creativity, logic, research and thought to it. Creativity fades when ease is replaced by critical thinking, and originality ceases to exist when automation overshadows curiosity. AI will only surpass human creativity when we give it permission to do so and when we do not pursue critical thinking.
To succeed in this era of AI, writers and authors must find a balance between their opinions, perspectives, and experiences and blend them with AI-generated responses. It is imperative to use AI strategically to help you refine your work without losing your voice or surrendering to technology.
The author is a freelance contributor.
Originally published in The News
