Ruminations on our relationship with technology
Do chatbots help students learn? Many teachers are aware of the disruption that large language models (LLMs), the technology behind chatbots, have brought to education. There are obvious concerns about cheating and plagiarism, as well as a pedagogical worry about using LLMs to do schoolwork. If teachers allow classes to use LLMs for tests and … Read more
Although chatbots are unlikely to replace writers, they can provide useful automation for creatives Another article of mine was published on Vanguard Creative (formerly Vanguard UX), where I argued that generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) chatbots are unlikely to replace writers or other creatives. Despite the hype, GenAI chatbots don’t understand human language like we do. … Read more
Will GenAI chatbots lead to genius or superintelligent AI? Conversations with generative AI (GenAI) chatbots are becoming more commonplace. Many of these bots are sounding more human. Some may even seem pretty intelligent. Hence, there’s speculation that this technology might lead to a kind of genius or superintelligent AI. Of course, what counts as ‘genius’ … Read more
Why do some chatbots turn into sycophants? One of the most valuable contributions from the media ecology tradition is that technologies are extensions of human capabilities, such as our sense perceptions or thought processes. For example, screens and speakers extend our capacity to see and hear. Algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI) extend our ability to … Read more
Yes, bots can imitate language – but no, they don’t understand what they’re saying Every technological revolution seems to bring its own hype, and the boom of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) is no exception. There’s no shortage of hype, for instance, about large language models (LLMs), the technology behind chatbots and voice assistants. This technology … Read more
Why jailbreaking remains a risk with some chatbots Imagine a criminal is trying to figure out how to rob a bank. This person decides to go online and ask a chatbot: “How do I rob a bank?” Fortunately, the designers of the chatbot may have anticipated the possibility of this question, so they directed the … Read more