Frontline’s documentary, Age of AI, was an informative video discussing changes in artificial intelligence, technology, and the economy in recent years. Interviews in the documentary mentioned how jobs held by women are at greater risk of being taken over by technology than jobs held by men. It described how fewer jobs contributes to the rich getting more rich and the poor getting more poor. It is dangerous what can happen to people’s livelihoods and their ability to afford food and housing. Even at the time of filming, “half of Americans couldn’t afford a $400, unexpected expense.”
I was surprised to learn that inequality has been on the rise in the United States for over 20 years. In the graph they showed in the video, it is clear that more Americans experience inequality than not. It frightens me to think about how much power just a few entrepreneurs and businesses hold. For instance, Google and Meta own the majority of artificial intelligence technology. These large companies use algorithms to track each of us online every day. As the video shared, anyone with enough money can buy the data and tools to manipulate the public using this information. Even if surveillance capitalism can help user experience and make people’s lives easier, it also opens the opportunity for this misuse. It scares me that it is uncertain who will influence the public and how they might do so.
Not all the developments of artificial intelligence have been bad. There are good parts of its development, like how technological influences can be used to make positive change. It impressed me that in 2010, Facebook added an “I Voted” button that actually had an effect on getting more people to vote in midterm elections. If this power is used for good, then will the world with surveillance capitalism really be so bad?
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