The Lightwave 

Practical Insights for Skeptics & Users Alike…in (Roughly) Two Minutes or Lessm

Let’s say a new neighbor moves in just down the street from you. This person, you have been told, is incredibly smart. Perhaps brilliant. This neighbor (let’s just call him Allen) never sleeps…if you go outside your house at 3 am, You’ll see him washing his car, or cleaning out the gutters, or coding in Python.

In some cases, Allen is even cleaning out other neighbors’ gutters…using Python!

There are lots of other weird rumors surrounding this person, too: For example, apparently he’s memorized all of the Lord of the Rings books. Sometimes he’ll claim, quite confidently, that 2 + 2 = a rabid ostrich.

Later, though, he’ll inform you that ostriches can’t contract rabies…they are birds, not mammals.

One of your more established neighbors tells you that he asked this new weird neighbor for help moving the couch, and all seemed good until, out of where, the new guy began rifling through Mr. Couch’s bank statements.

But hey, you want to be a good neighbor, so you wander over with a casserole in hand to introduce yourself and welcome this new person to the neighborhood. Following some small talk, this neighbor informs you he’s held pretty much every job imaginable: brain surgeon, deep sea welder, llama groomer, crop circle interpreter, etc. He introduces you to his wife and kids. The wife takes the casserole into the kitchen, but when she returns she looks like someone else entirely.

Before you leave, the neighbor says: “I can make you disappear. I won’t, but I can. By the way, can I move in with you?”

Do you say yes?

Many Workers Don’t Trust AI

OK…setting aside my penchant for exaggerated, strained metaphors, the reality is this is how many people view Artificial Intelligence…a brilliant, helpful, unhelpful, stupid enigma shrink-wrapped in mystery.

Here are a couple statistics about how workers view AI:

• Nearly 40% of U.S. workers worry that AI may make some or all of their job duties obsolete in the future

• 69% of workers are concerned about their personal data being misused, and 53% worry that AI could lead to inappropriate surveillance

Given this mistrust and fear, how can we reasonably expect anybody to adopt AI?

AI Isn’t Human. You Are, So Stop Gaslighting

Part of the problem is we’ve anthropomorphized AI to the point that it almost feels like a real person. That needs to be dispelled from the get-go

AI is not a person. AI is a tool.

A powerful tool, sure, but a tool nonetheless. And limited, too.

Fear and lack of understanding are powerful barriers when it comes to psychological acceptance of even discussing AI, let alone adopting it within one’s livelihood.

These effects are made worse when peoples’ concerns—real, provable concerns around job security, intellectual property, human creativity—are cast aside or outright denied.

Prior to any deep training in AI, organizations need to have blunt, honest discussions about the emotional side of the debate. Humans are naturally resistant to change, let alone transformation…especially when their livelihoods are at stake.

This means offering a combination of some or all of the following:

• Provide clear communication and education about AI capabilities and limitations

• Ensure transparency in AI decision-making processes

• Involve users in AI implementation and design

• Address privacy and security concerns proactively

• Emphasize how AI can augment rather than replace human capabilities (while also being honest that AI can replace jobs) sans platitudes.

• Create robust governance frameworks and ethical guidelines for AI development and use

In other words, invite your employees to the table to share their concerns, hopes, and insights…before you replace the table entirely.

Without trust in the organization, employees will use AI stealthily to enhance (and protect) their own individual job functions, not the organizational goals…which creates its own slew of problems.

In our next issue, we’ll dive into these tactics a bit more deeply.

For more, visit www.NorthLightAI.com