The explosive surge in the adoption of AI chatbots has come to a turning point with far-reaching implications. ChatGPT, now the fastest-growing app of all time, is being adopted by Fortune 500 companies without due consideration of the long-term consequences. Generative AI holds consequences that are unintended, but one of the most noteworthy is the power it grants to the culture creating it. Popularity of ChatGPT has caused OpenAI to become a closed-source, profit-driven corporation, nullifying transparency and control of ChatGPT.
The potential of opens risks of bias and the potential to reverse progress made toward an inclusive, multi-cultural society can occur without the proper regulations. This algorithm is designed by humans to learn from digital content, and any time mass data is gathered and learned, representation of already marginalized groups is minimized. We risk erasing cultural identity by unifying it under one singular AI vision.
The user interface of applications like ChatGPT builds a sense of trust with the user. This makes it easy for users to overlook the ethical, corporate, and commercial needs of the service, leading to less transparency regarding the core values of the technology. To protect against this, those producing this technology must take responsibility and consider the potentially tremendous effect it can have on society.
For example, during the colonization of North America, many Indigenous people were compelled to discard their language and customs, instead adopting Christianity and eschewing their culture. This same effect can occur, albeit differently, with ChatGPT and its global reach. The answers it provides may be seen as definitive and the criteria to follow, which is tantamount to enlightenment of the developers’ values and viewpoints to the rest of the world. This does not acknowledge many unique worldviews, economies, and cultures that may run contrary to those perspectives.
Rather than pushing the development of the technology at maximum speed and risking endangering cultural heterogenity, the world needs to embrace the use of this technology critically and responsibly. Companies involved in the production of AI tools and governments overseeing technological advances need to set a communal standard of transparency and ethics, allowing users to comprehend the impacts of this technology fully and accurately. We must recognize and mitigate these risks, and work toward creating a balanced, diverse and equitable society.
