I was recently shown AI at work in a social media app that my kids use. I never knew it was there, but it is. Front and centre. An AI chatbot that encourages the kids to interact with it.
I work in cyber security and have a background in data protection, and it got me thinking.
Not the kind of thinking you might think I am thinking. Not work related but more parental related.
I am still not sure how feel about this.
When they showed it to me, they were a little put out themselves. It was 2 separate conversations on 2 separate occasions with the same theme. One conversation was with my 17-year-old son, and one was with my 14-year-old daughter.
What they both brought up is how in your face it is inside the app. They hadn't asked for it. They just logged in one day and it was there. It interacts in their chats. It encourages them to talk to it. And try as they might, they cannot delete it or remove it.
Food for thought
Being brought up with me doing what I do for a living they asked it questions like, ‘where do I live?'. It gave the correct answer – it does not know. They asked it – ‘where am I?' Again, the correct answer – it does not know. Then they asked it – ‘where is a certain fast-food restaurant near me?' This time it returned 3 options with distances and times to get there. Yet it doesn't know where you are so how does it know where the fast-food restaurants are in relation to you?
AI with Personality
This particular AI allows you to change its name, give it an avatar, personalise it. To make it more relatable and engaging but remember, it is targeted at minors. It is targeted and it wants them to engage with it. If you are wondering, my boy has named his after the AI in Blade Runner and takes great delight in trying to annoy it.
There is a lot to process here, for all of us.
Industry Approach
My industry is so far behind the curve. Data Protection Regulation, Regulation in general and Cyber Security aren't even at the table for the discussion. Sure, there are debates in my community. What a bad thing this is. How it is going to take peoples jobs. There are more posts than you can count as this latest fad takes the mainstream imagination with guides to use it better and it seems everyone is an expert.
I am not an expert, but I am a concerned parent.
AI Adulting
We think that AI is an adult thing and the worries we have are adult worries.
But when AI moves into the mainstream social platforms and apps of our children under the radar but also under our noses, we have some thinking to do.
I would say parents should start to have the conversation with their children on the dangers of AI and the appropriate sensible use but there are problems with this.
The first problem is we do not have the tools, language, knowledge or understanding to even start that conversation.
The second problem is our children are one step ahead of us.
There is a battle coming for AI but in many ways, by targeting our children, the battle is already won.
Regulation will eventually try to catch up but like the internet, I fear the genie is already out of the bottle.
What can you do?
I am not sure there is anything you can do. If I have one piece of advice though it would be to start the conversation with your children, get them to show you it in action and educate yourself. But make it Snappy
Author: Stuart Barker | Director at High Table the ISO 27001 Company: https://hightable.io