11 months ago
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Earlier today, OpenAI’s co-founder and current CEO, Sam Altman, wrote a post on the microblogging platform X (formerly known as Twitter) about how he expects artificial intelligence to be capable of “superhuman persuasion well before it is superhuman at general intelligence.” Back in June 2023, Elon Musk also warned about humans’ increasing dependency on AI and how we could forget about operating the machines that developed AI in the first place, raising concerns among those who follow the field of AI innovation religiously.
What Is Superhuman Persuasion?
In his latest tweet, Altman says that AI’s ability of superhuman persuasion may lead to “some very strange outcomes.” As per OpenAI’s ChatGPT, superhuman persuasion could “imply an extraordinarily effective or powerful form of persuasion.” Adding to it, the chatbot says, “it might suggest a level of skill or technique in persuasion that goes beyond what is typically considered normal or expected.” While this appears to be a generic answer at best, Snapchat’s My AI has some interesting take.
Per Snapchat’s My AI, superhuman persuasion is “the ability to influence others in a highly effective and convincing manner.” It involves using various techniques and strategies to twist and turn people’s beliefs, opinions, and resulting actions. Upon asking to elaborate on the techniques, My AI mentions them as storytelling, building rapport, appealing to emotions, employing persuasive language, etc. “It’s all about finding the right approach to connect with and influence others,” My AI adds.
Usage Of AI For Propagating Misinformation Is The Main Concern
If we combine this information with Altman’s tweet, we start to see the underlying concern – manipulation through misinformation. Earlier this year, cases of websites publishing articles generated using AI came up, which raised the question of authenticity and accountability for AI-generated information. Further, we’ve also heard about AI’s habit of hallucinating, wherein it shifts from the topic of discussion and starts generating absurd responses.
Although AI has found use cases in the fields of sales, customer support, troubleshooting issues, etc., there is no denying that it can be used to generate partly true or manipulated narratives that, when pushed on the internet, might be believed by several to be true. While there are both positives and negatives associated with AI’s development and its use cases, it is concerning when the pioneers of the technology raise questions, something that is also echoed in the tweet’s comments section.
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