“Let us focus on one point:
“At heart, for human beings to flourish, they must have the opportunity to exercise their agency and efficacy in a world that they can, broadly, understand and which is directly responsive to their needs, interests and concerns.
“In all the talk of what AI can do, this basic recognition of the nature of humanity seems drowned out.
Our children – one-third of the population today, 100% of the population tomorrow – will not know a world without, or before AI. We are treating them as the canaries in the coal mine. They may never forgive us.
“Perhaps we could start over and develop a truly human-centered vision of AI and its potential. But instead, the political interests of states in unholy tandem with the economic interests of companies seem to drive the agenda, to our lasting detriment.
“As for our children – one-third of the population today, 100% of the population tomorrow – they will not know a world without, or before AI. We are treating them as the canaries in the coal mine. They may never forgive us.”
This response was written in November 2023 in reply to the question: Considering likely changes due to the proliferation of AI in individuals’ lives and in social, economic and political systems, how will life have changed by 2040? This and more than 150 additional responses are included in the report “The Impact of Artificial Intelligence by 2040”