I posted this last week on Instagram, and ironically enough, I was accused of using AI to write it because I use em dashes—apparently ChatGPT does as well. (It’s almost like AI learned to write from real writers—weird.)
Anyway, this situation spurred my thinking . . .
AI has already begun seeding doubt in damn near everything we’re seeing. Real writing, real videos, real people, and very soon, real life, will all be questioned, leaving us with what? A constant state of skepticism every time we’re online? (Great, but where was that skepticism five years ago?)
In my opinion, this perpetual state of skepticism will be AI’s greatest creation. Because this alone will advance our collective desire for real-world connection.
This is the silver lining.
Every day, I’m seeing more and more individuals sharing a similar sentiment: a thirst for tangible, genuine interactions. And this increased desire to disengage from all that’s disingenuous is the most hopeful that I’ve felt about humanity since we all unified together in late 2016 to combat the mysterious clown epidemic. (Do you remember that shit?)
Clowns aside, I think 2016 was the last “good” year on social media. The years following, particularly 2020 and 2021, took whatever was left of an already fractured machine and broke it entirely. The division, censorship—and echo chambers known as algorithms—took all the fun out of something that once felt like a portal to new people, places, and things.
In a good way, I believe many of us are finally becoming disenchanted enough with social media, dating apps, and other forms of (dis)connected tech that we’re actively seeking the novelty, warmth, and value of the real world. And, I love it.
In the coming years, I do believe in-person events, stories written by humans, and experiences that rely on a strong sense of community rather than a strong Wi-Fi signal are going to become more important—and enticing—than ever.
With this in mind, I’ve decided to stop allowing the frustration of deliberate human replacement to occupy too much of my time. My mental space has been pretty cooked lately while I watch industries and individuals walk blindly into the fire of AI, like moths drawn to a flame by the promise of productivity and/or the removal of creative “gatekeeping.” (That’s another topic for a different, less agreeable day.)
I still hate what’s happening, but here’s my new way of looking at it:
If AI ushers in a return to the real world, keep that shit plugged in and let’s celebrate what makes us human.
If we can’t put the genie back in the bottle, let’s put down the bottle and make our own magic.
If we can’t fight it, let’s connect in person long enough to forget about it—even if only momentarily.
Now, I’ll never agree with the use of AI when it comes to art and creation (it’s lazy, fake, and fucking stupid), but if I’m going to die on that hill—like one of the last dinosaurs staring at the asteroid—at least I’ll be staring at that asteroid with my own two eyes and not through the lens of a phone.
As always, thanks for reading. I appreciate your time, your attention, and most importantly, your human-to-human support.
-Kyle, fka “The Capt.”
I wholeheartedly agree. I have been on this same wavelength of thought. What good is thought made manifest if not translated through the energetics of the heart and of lived human experience? AI will never be able to mimic that component of humanity. I am reminded of Iain McGilchrist's book "The Master and his Emissary." May we always be the "master" and AI our "emissary." There is no machine replacement or learning model for the wisdom of the human heart and soul.
Yes!! Really cool to see you make this observation. I've been thinking the same thing. I wrote this a few days ago:
"It’s great that AI will usher in an era of extreme skepticism for everything you see online.
It’s just bleak that it takes this level of disruption to get people to start from the default position of questioning what you see online."
This is the dynamic that most people don't consider: every change comes with trade-offs and opportunities.
As an em dash enthusiast myself lol, I sympathize with a lot of the major downsides and disruptions AI will bring. But I can't help but feel like it's overdue that something makes it unabashedly clear that the online world is pervasively fake in many ways and in-person, humanizing conditions are what we should be pursuing more of.