Why I'm Walking Away From Generative AI

People have a wide range of thoughts and feelings when it comes to generative AI, and many people—especially creatives—have some strong feelings about it. My goal here isn’t to dis anyone’s feelings or decisions regarding generative AI. This is simply an explanation of how my thoughts and feelings have changed over the past year or so.

I've Always Been Pro Technology

Just a little background, I wrote my first stories longhand and also on a manual Smith Corona typewriter back in the late 1970s. In the late 1980s, I used Aldus Pagemaker. In the 1990s, I began using WordPerfect, then Microsoft Word. Now, I’m grateful for the ease of writing in Scrivener on both my laptop and my phone.

I’ve always embraced new tech. Over the years, I taught myself to become a WordPress web developer. I also taught myself graphic design on Photoshop and now design my own book covers. I learned how to use Adobe Audition to narrate and master my own audiobooks. I love technology.

Oooh, A Shiny New Toy! Or At Least A Tool!

So when generative AI started become popular a few years ago. I was amazed at the things it could do. Yeah, it had some shortcomings, but I figured those bugs would improve with time. And they have, sort of.

I saw it as a tool that might be able to streamline some of my processes, but not as a replacement for my own creativity, particularly when it comes to my writing. I wasn’t interested in publishing AI-generated stories. That wasn’t why I got into writing.

But perhaps it could help me write marketing copy or blurbs. Maybe it could dd the HTML tags to text I’d written for my newsletter—a simple but tedious task. Maybe it could help expand stock photos that were cropped too closely for an image I was creating.

But There's A Down Side...

At the same time, a lot of creatives felt that their work had been stolen by greedy tech companies training their AI models. And I can see their point, though I didn’t personally feel as angry about that as others did. People have been pirating my work for ten years and there’s sadly not a lot I can do about it. So I don’t give it a lot of brain space.

But there are other issues that I am now taking more seriously than I once did.

For starters, there is the tsunami of AI-generated slop. I see it on FB pages run by engagement farms across the world, some of which are actually scammers seeking new victims. You’ve seen them. Those heart-warming stories, adorable photos of baby animals,  or “forgotten” history. But surprise, they’re AI-generated and filled with misinformation. Sometimes deliberately.

My concern is that these engagement farms can be used to spread harmful political and health misinformation. Here in the US, we have midterms coming up in about six months. The bots will be plenty active spewing nonsense. And how do we tell truth from fiction?

But my biggest concern is the environmental costs. Generative AI requires millions of gallons of water for cooling the data centers. Some say it’s a closed system. It may be. But it still takes a lot of water. And the heat generated by those data centers will be going into the environment as global warming continues to worsen.

Even more concerning is the massive demand for electricity, making an ever increasing impact on our power grids. This is particularly troubling during summer and winter when demand is already at its highest. This will inevitably drive up heating and cooling costs for everyday people.

I've seen some say that a single AI prompt will only cost X amount of energy, the equivalent of 15 seconds on social media or some such. And they rarely if ever quote their sources. 

But it's not just the energy required for a single prompt. It's the total amount of energy that these AI data centers are using. And that is massive. And it will only get worse. My source is the MIT Technology Review. 

And last but not least, there is the ever-growing need for computer chips and processors to run the machines. This is creating a backlog that is driving up the price of devices like phones and laptops.

So where does this leave me?

I would love to continue to use it as a tool to help me express my creativity. But as I see the real harms to people and the environment (beyond the stealing vs. fair use debate), I am choosing to no longer use it in any capacity. Not even for noncreative tasks like adding HTML tags for my newsletter.

Granted, generative AI is everywhere. Embedded in browsers, apps, etc., often without the option to turn it off. It’s so easy to use it without being aware I’m using it. But I will try to be more mindful and avoid it where I can.

You Do You, Boo

At the same time, I respect everyone else’s process of making their own decisions. My mother was a freelance graphic designer and early adopter of digital graphic design. 

I’m not in the business of shaming people for making decisions on how they use tech or which tools they can and can’t use to create. You want to use gen AI? That’s fine. Your choice. I’m now choosing not to.

So that’s where I am. What are your thoughts? Please be kind and respectful. 

You may find this article by the MIT Technology Review informative in breaking down the complex nature of AI energy consumption.