The advent of technology as responsible for societal progress has been debated countless times throughout history. Throughout the many scientific revolutions, the positions of those in favor of new modalities being implemented in our everyday lives have been contrasted with the positions of the conservatives afraid of how these new technologies would radically change the substrate of our society, both practically and societally. In recent years, these dynamics have been observed in the creation and subsequent growth of generative artificial intelligences. As someone actively part of the scientific community, it is extremely hard not to stand with the progressive stance.
For this latter stance, the innovation that a scientific discovery, such as a powerful tool like generative AIs, brings to the world’s population is extremely valuable and cannot be denied. Overall, every step forward in technology and scientific fields is a big achievement, as it generally solves present issues and improves mechanisms. If it were not for these studies and implementations, we would not have evolved both as a species and as a society. Working environments have been drastically safer, households have been more comfortable and livable, and overall life conditions have been improving globally as science progresses.
On the other hand, it is impossible not to consider the downsides of fast and unstoppable progress. Having such important and significant innovations in such short time spans can indeed lead to societal maladaptation, causing alarming issues that need to be faced. As a new tool is presented and implemented in a working ecosystem, it is evident that the whole mechanism needs to be reorganized, and that is not always easy or simple. This rapid overturn can in fact be responsible for personnel cuts or poorly planned utilization of the aforementioned tools, ending in a collapsing system, which has more cons than pros.
All considered, it is undeniable that progress does not come without cost, and in some occasions, its actual applications can cause more harm than good. But it is evident that it is a process that cannot be stopped. For this exact reason, it should be embraced and recognized for its leading role in societal progress, with the correct measures and controls, in order to make technological advancements something that we can arbitrarily control and manage, so that negative potentials are kept under control.