01/12/2025
Artificial Intelligence – the Ultimate Slave Master?
In a recent interview the Chief Executive of Google, Sundar Pichai, stated that people should not “blindly trust” AI, urging cautious use balanced against the use of other tools. I felt like I was hearing my own thoughts echoed and inwardly said “at last” ! Someone else is thinking what I am. Now, don’t get me wrong. I wholeheartedly support the use of AI in certain circumstances. It is phenomenally good at aiding diagnoses when used in radiology. It excels in helping to analyse large datasets and improving pharmaceutical interventions. When used in direct healthcare it can alert healthcare professionals to increased risk in patients. So we can see that artificial intelligence has the potential to contribute positively to healthcare in a variety of ways.
The issue I have with AI is that ultimately, it robs us of one of our most precious gifts – the ability to think analytically and critically. As an academic, these are the things we teach our students, and to treasure as a life long skill. However, when AI is ubiquitous and so easy to use, why do we need to bother to think at all?
The answer lies in the future and what we want that future to look like. As humans, as academics, as researchers and most importantly as students we dare not lose our critical thinking skills. The danger ahead is that because of the ease of use of AI, we let it take over in the decision making process and in doing that, lose our autonomy. Once we lose autonomy we lose control and as Stephen Hawking famously said.....
“The development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race….It would take off on its own, and re-design itself at an ever increasing rate. Humans, who are limited by slow biological evolution, couldn’t compete, and would be superseded.”
I don’t know about you, but I don’t really fancy the idea of being eliminated – well not just yet anyway! Be good to hear your thoughts about it.
Judy Jenkins
Programme Director MSc Health Informatics (Digital Health and Care)