Embrace AI

I recently came across an article from New York Magazine, whose author clearly frames AI as a big problem. While I was surprised by how AI is already shaping the world and how much risk can come from that, I wondered if AI really is the problem.

Are we sure it is? Are we sure slow-adapting institutions are not the problem?

The goal of universities shouldn’t change over time: students need to complete their study path, be competent in what they study, and be ready for a job. If institutions fail in that, then they need to adapt.

The article describes how essay writing is completely done through AI. Writing essays (or writing in general) helps develop critical thinking and structure one’s thoughts. In an increasingly internet-based and asynchronous world, writing is fundamental.

One could say that students should know when writing on their own is more beneficial than offloading it to AI. But how could they know if they were born and raised in an already AI-based society? Schools should teach them how to do it properly, but are they prepared to do it? Can they really teach how to use it?

Well, schools are known to be slow-adapting, and this case will be no exception.

Also, we evolved to be lazier over time and offload more and more things to technology. Fighting technology doesn’t make sense. Is going back to paper maps instead of using Google Maps really a thing? Of course not. The same applies to AI. It’s here to stay, and there’s no turning back.

The solution to this is probably only one: Embrace AI.

A comment from r/ChatGPT really caught my attention. The professor changed their teaching style, where students are encouraged to use AI as a first step. After that, they should analyze and criticize what it has produced, propose changes, and check references. Evaluation is done from the first prompt onward. This makes cheating really hard, and it helps students develop their intellectual abilities.

Now we’re talking! That was what I was looking for, and I would argue that’s the path institutions should follow to avoid gifting degrees to students who will have many problems once they reach their first job.

So, what now? Well, the path forward isn’t to wait and see, but to act! Over the centuries, society has always had to evolve to keep up with the new pace. The question is not whether AI will change things, but how we will adapt to that change.

Instead of passively waiting for the future, we should actively build it.