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Artificial intelligence is one of the most powerful technologies invented by humankind. This technology has affected almost every industry, including the medical, finance, and banking Industries. Due to its enormous potential, investors are sinking some serious funding into AI.
Results from a study conducted by Forrester Research predict that investments in AI will increase by 300 percent in 2017. Many tech giants like Facebook, Google, Apple, Microsoft, and others have already started investing time and money into discovering AI technologies to supplement their offerings.
AI has the potential to create many positive changes, but there are plenty of risks associated with its implementation as well. According to a study by Oxford University and Deloitte, 75 percent of customer service jobs are at risk of becoming automated in the near future. We can already see this transition happening as bots have been slowly taking over customer service roles for years.
Artificial intelligence and social media platforms
The number of active social media users increases significantly every day. There are over 2.45 billion active social media users around the world, and this number is expected to grow to 2.9 billion in 2020. There are many popular social media platforms available to users. Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram are among the most popular and profitable. It’s even possible to launch your own community through white-label social network builders like Ning. Even so, the idea of distinct social networks is still shaking people’s minds. The number of social networks is growing with a wide range of specialization, from developer-focused platforms to online spaces for book lovers.
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Artificial intelligence is already playing a vital part in social media marketing campaigns. We can see chatbots used in various messenger services provided by social media platforms. There are plenty of examples that show how the AI is impacting various social media platforms. For example, Pinterest has implemented object recognition to boost pins.
Artificial intelligence is so sophisticated that it can process natural languages and learn from past events. Now the question is, what will happen if developers start using AI to build the basis for social networks?
What if AI starts building its own networks?
Artificial intelligence has the ability to learn from previous events, which makes it both attractive and dangerous. There are various computer languages, such as C++, Java, and PHP, that programmers use to communicate with machines. However, AI has enabled machines to process natural languages as well. AI innovations are able to pick up the English language and create patterns for understanding how to formulate sentences on their own.
Recently, Facebook’s AI Research Lab (FAIR) noticed that its chatbots had accidentally created a language of their own, and the whole situation got blown out of proportion. The bots were able to create their own language based on the words the researchers taught them, but we weren’t on the brink of AI domination, as some articles made it seem. The researchers began implementing a reward system to help the chatbots use English words correctly, but the machines still had to unlearn their own version of the English language. The power of AI, in this case, is quite strange. It might even produce concerns about whether AI’s ability to create its own language could become dangerous in the future.
There are many consequences if AI is able to create its own language and social networks. Here are some of the most significant potential risks to consider.
1. Machines could interact without human oversight
We develop machines and AI technologies with the goal of making everyday processes easier for humans. However, humans will have trouble understanding the communication between machines if the AI they use to function begins to build its own language without human assistance. The machines communicating with each other in a completely different language will be of no use for humans. If machines are able to build a network of computers that interact with each other, it will prove difficult for humans to command.
2. Irreversible change could occur
Until now, machines were not capable of overpowering human beings in terms of intelligence. The implementation of human intelligence in machines has changed this by making them far more intelligent than ever before. Now, there is a possibility that machines can learn and develop new things without human assistance.
If AI starts building its own languages, machines could develop their own networks. These networks could be impossible for humans to shut down. This means the machines could develop programs, instructions, and other languages to rival or surpass what humanity can create.
3. Digital assistants could create trouble
AI could become advanced to a point where it acts without permission. In today’s world, AI programs perform many tasks without receiving instructions from humans. Artificial intelligence in the future could start interfering with the lives of humans if it develops its own network. A group of machines would be able to communicate to dictate what is correct and what is not. In this scenario, humans would not be controlling machines, but machines would be controlling the humans.
Currently, the intelligence in digital assistants is not a major threat, but the creation of their own network combined with improved functionality through learning could make digital assistants too smart to control.
4. Humans may not be able to compete with machines
If a group of machines is able to communicate in an unknown language, humans may not be able to compete with machines. Notable researchers and tech gurus like Stephen Hawking, Steve Wozniak, and Bill Gates have warned about this risk associated with the progression of AI.
Research has predicted that AI will replace around 15 or 16 percent of American jobs within the next decade. If AI is able to build its own social platform, this could mean that human beings will lose their power over machines. The machines will start designing and redesigning themselves.
Slow biological evolution limits human growth, but this is not the case for machines. A network of human beings would not be able to compete with a network of machines, and the end of society could be possible due to the extreme advancement of AI.
Build AI, but carefully
AI is still in its earliest phase, but we can already see it affecting almost every interaction we have with technology. Artificial intelligence will be more mature and advanced in the future. It’s impossible to even imagine how it might impact our lives just several years from now.
Many popular sci-fi films and series show the eerie side of AI. They provide basic predictions for how AI and machine learning could negatively affect humans, but these fictions could become reality in the distant future.
The potential consequences of AI machines building a shared network are pretty scary. The point in bringing them to light is to encourage researchers and programmers to use caution while implementing AI in their programs. Innovators, creators, and thought leaders in the space must carefully monitor technology to increase the benefits of AI while minimizing potential risks.
Vivian Michaels is a huge tech enthusiast who likes to write articles on evolving technology.
