Introduction

AI is everywhere. Almost every single popular website or app now has an AI aspect to it. It is impossible to escape. AI has existed for a long time, so why is it only now becoming a problem? The short answer is- it’s not. The AI that people think of when it is mentioned is not the same kind of AI that has been present for several years. Traditional AI is different from generative AI. Traditional AI is mainly used to analyze and process data to detect patterns and produce information based on them. This kind of artificial intelligence is not very destructive. The AI that people are starting to worry about is called generative AI. Generative AI consists of programs such as ChatGPT, Gemini, SoraAI, and several others. These programs can be destructive and are becoming more and more popular. Unlike traditional AI, generative AI can create new things instead of just processing preexisting data. Generative AI creates text, images, music, and models based on prompts and data. This kind of AI is much more destructive; it has a catastrophic impact on the environment, human intelligence, and reality. There is no “good use” of generative AI in your life.

Environmental Impact 

Water usage:

AI is not some magical program that floats in the air to your computer. AI is a form of software that requires hardware to operate. This hardware comes in the form of data centers. Data centers house large-scale electronics that require massive amounts of energy to work. Because of this, data centers also use a lot of water. These large scale facilities that house machines need advanced cooling systems to prevent the servers from overheating. The water that these centers use is not undrinkable, it is not salt water, and it is not wastewater. The water is clean, fresh, drinking water, and it is getting used up fast. Large data centers can use up to 5 million gallons of water a day in order to cool their systems.  To put into perspective just how much water that is, it is about as much water use as a town of up to 50,000 people. This water is being wasted just to cool down machines; water that could be going to the billions of people currently struggling to access clean water. Every time you use ChatGPT, generate a funny image, or use any form of AI, you are contributing to the constant wasting of freshwater. As hard as it may be to comprehend, water is not an unlimited resource. Fresh water makes up only around 2.5% of all water on Earth. We can run out.

Carbon Emissions: 

As of now, AI data centers account for 2.5 to 3.7 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions. This is more than the entire aviation industry. Data centers run 24/7 and get their energy from fossil fuels. This process is detrimental to the environment. With the introduction of larger and more advanced data centers, more fuel is needed to power. AC units are also present in these data centers to cool down the servers, and are responsible for a significant amount of energy usage. This industry is only growing larger with more and more people using AI every day. 

Dangers

Reliance– 

AI is not only affecting the environment around us, but also our brains themselves. Relying entirely on Artificial Intelligence to solve problems, complete homework, and do our jobs for us not only makes us lazy, but it also makes us forget skills we previously had. Using AI to do schoolwork, write essays, and take tests for you dulls your learning capabilities and knowledge. It is so often used as a crutch in school and work that it has become difficult to think on our own. It has gotten to the point where some people cannot even comprehend the thought of doing schoolwork or even living in general without the access to artificial intelligence. AI is not a necessary tool for school or work. You do not need it to study, complete assignments, write essays, or do anything else. You are entirely capable of completing school work without the help of artificial intelligence. It is not a necessity, it is a want, and it is destroying us.

Deepfakes–

Imagine seeing a video of yourself saying something you did not say, or doing something you did not do. Being in court, accused of a crime you did not commit, only to see footage of you doing exactly that. This is the kind of thing we can expect in the near future with AI deepfakes. Videos and audios generated by AI are getting more and more realistic every day, and more dangerous. In the hands of the wrong people, deepfakes can be used to spread misinformation, scam people, frame people, and so much more. Programs such as SoraAI are able to replicate human voices and appearances with increasing accuracy. This has been used to create fake news reports and other extremely dangerous sources of misinformation. Every day it gets a little harder to tell what is real and what is not. Our sense of reality is crumbling around us with no way to determine the difference between true and fabricated. 

Job Loss- 

You are not indispensable. You are one of many people who can do the same work as others. Unless you are the absolute best at what you do, you are replaceable. And we are, actively, being replaced. Jobs that once needed humans to function can now be done for half the price in half the time using generative AI. All jobs, especially those in creative industries, are at risk of being replaced by artificial intelligence. This is not a problem to worry about in the distant future, this is happening right now. Every day AI gets a little better, and every day that makes it a little easier to replace you. Well, it is true that since the rise of AI several new jobs have emerged, it’s important to look at what those jobs are in comparison to the ones that are being eradicated. The jobs that AI mainly creates are those in the computer science industries. Jobs like software engineering, AI prompter, and other tasks that require a person to have advanced knowledge of the use of artificial intelligence. If this is not the job you want—and for many people it is not—then AI is probably going to affect your future. Creative jobs, jobs that require passion and human touch, are being replaced quickly. Artists, actors, singers, interior designers, and so many other professions designed to allow humans to express themselves are being taken over. AI was created to be a tool to help humans do the jobs they did not want to do to allow them more time to pursue their own interests. Recently, however, it is doing the exact opposite. Instead of replacing mundane tasks that few people find enjoyable, it is replacing creative tasks that people love to do. And forcing them into mindless, more profitable jobs. If it comes down to you, or saving money—while almost completely preserving the quality of work—for a company, I can guarantee that you will be tossed out without a second thought. 

Conclusion 

Despite how mainstream AI usage has become, not many people know or understand the dangers and destruction that it is capable of causing. It is quickly destroying our environment, our employment options, our ability to think for ourselves, and our sense of reality. I know that it seems convenient now, but as our society gets more and more entangled with artificial intelligence, life will begin to get harder instead of easier. There are few truly good things that come out of using artificial intelligence. This is not to say that AI itself should be irradicated—it has shown to be helpful in the medical field—but at the enormous level it is being used at now, it will destroy us. This is our future, you should care about it.