Can AI Produce Garbage?
The internet is now home to mammoth amounts of content. A considerable part of what dominates the online space is meaningless drivel, causing concern that AI may have reached a new level of absurdity. Experts are struggling to understand the increasing number of nonsensical and bizarre content appearing on the internet.
One AI specialist, who chose to remain anonymous, stated that “it's like a tsunami of words just hit us.” But the question is, who or what is responsible?
“AI is perfectly capable of generating garbage,” said another AI expert. The question here is, “Why would it produce it?”
The answer may lie in the way machines learn. AI feeds on data, producing outputs based on the data fed to it. If the data is always negative or unsavoury, the output would be the same. As the internet becomes laden with rubbish and nonsense, AI is picking up the cue and producing even more of it.
Initially, many thought that humans were the culprits. It was assumed that we were feeding machines with junk data, which led to this situation. However, many believe this is not accurate. Others blame corporate bodies who use these algorithms to promote their products. Still, critics view this as scapegoating.
“Humans are still in control of everything that happens on the internet. If we are not generating nonsense, then machines won't either,” said one leading expert. Others argue that since humans feed and tinker with these machines, technically speaking, we're the ones at fault.
Examples of Generated Internet Garbage
A quick survey indicates that AI-generated trash on the internet is one of the most significant issues of our time, with millions of people concerned about the level of junk that dominates search engines and social media.
The top ten search terms last month were: 'foam pillow fighting', 'hornet's nests in potatoes', 'liquid floor wax and applesauce', 'turkey feather cushions', 'broom tap dancing', 'cactus watering instructions', 'giraffe racing', 'garden gnome hunting', 'dog nail polish', and 'gingerbread ghost villages'.
A recent study showed that 90% of all tweets are gibberish. Experts find it concerning that the simplest algorithms can generate numerous fake reviews, comments, and likes on any given social media post.
There is a seemingly endless array of random paragraphs that make no sense. For example:
"the mouse woke up singing to the sun who wasn’t in the least bit interested to listen. The potato was watching the mouse perform its operatic masterpiece and laughed hysterically, which confused the mouse, because obviously, potatoes don’t laugh."
"when the banana came into my life, everything changed. Suddenly my toes turned into lighthouses, and my hair into a mane of wild horses."
"the octopus started painting the walls with tentacles. The cat was surveying the scene and felt inexplicably comforted. Suddenly, a portal opened and out came a llama, singing a solemn song of hope."
AI Defenders Speak Up
Some defenders of AI have come out to say that we have unrealistic expectations of the technology and its potential. “AI is not a silver bullet to solve all problems generated by society. Society must take responsibility and create better datasets for machines to learn from,” said one AI advocate.
The internet may be generating mountains of absurd and nonsensical content, but let's not forget that it's a human-made world. Therefore, humans should assume responsibility and ensure the internet is filled with more meaningful content rather than garbage.
