The invention of the printing press in 1436 caused consternation and fears, especially in the Church, which back then wanted a monopoly on knowledge, but it had a major positive impact on the Renaissance as it facilitated the creation and dissemination of new ideas.
When photography was invented in 1822, painters rose up in arms because people and images could now be captured in an instant, instead of weeks or months.
“From today, painting is dead!” exclaimed French painter Paul Delaroche. But it resulted in a whole new breed of artists and many more opportunities for artistic expression. And as far as I know, we still have living painters.
And when Photoshop came out in 1990, some photographers were horrified, until they tried it and they saw what it could do for them and their work, and then they embraced it.
Gramophone records and radio threatened the Musicians Union which had a hold on the economics of live performances. Television sets threatened movie theaters, Cable TV threatened Broadcast TV, Streaming threatened Cable TV, and the Internet threatened information dispersal, ownership and control. And steam engines and cars threatened the horse and buggy. Yes, jobs were lost, but all of these also created enormous numbers of new jobs.
Disruptive technologies usually work democratically; they allow increasing numbers of people to have access to those things which were previously very rare, expensive, or difficult to produce. A disruptive technology challenges the status quo, forcing change
AI is a disruptive technology, arguably the most disruptive technology of the 21st century.
Yes, it will replace a lot of jobs, but it is predicted to create more new jobs than it replaces, just like the many disruptive technologies before it.
It’s important to differentiate between different kinds of AI – AI that tries to replace artists is clearly not good, but AI that helps artists market themselves is good, in my opinion.
It’s up to you whether you embrace it, or try to avoid it. I embraced it back in 1998 and I’m very happy that I did.
Tony Rockliff
AI Consultant and builder with 25 years of AI experience
https://personalcustomgpts.com
