What Tech Insiders Actually Think of AI Is Extremely Revealing

"As ChatGPT's third anniversary approaches, AI hype is hard to escape. Tech companies are committing hundreds of billions of dollars to enormous data center buildouts, while industry leaders are promising an inevitable future in which superintelligent machines will usher in an era of unprecedented prosperity. But many tech insiders are quietly singing a very different tune, expressing a growing conviction that's been circulating for a while now: that AI is immensely overhyped."

"Tech entrepreneur and writer Anil Dash reports that "most people who actually have technical roles within the tech industry" share an "extraordinary degree of consistency in their feelings about AI." Unlike their CEOS, Dash reports, these workers believe that "technologies like [large language models] have utility, but the absurd way they've been overhyped, the fact they're being forced on everyone, and the insistence on ignoring the many valid critiques about them make it very difficult to focus on legitimate uses where they might add value.""

"Dash says these workers are afraid to speak up and call for a more moderate and realistic approach to the tech that respects "commitments to environmental sustainability" and that isn't "centralized under the control of a handful of giant companies." It's not an abstract threat. We've already seen thousands of tech workers being laid off as companies continue to double down on their AI investments. Meanwhile, tech leaders are actively threatening to fire employees who are unwilling to embrace AI at any cost."

Many technical employees believe AI is immensely overhyped despite large corporate investments and promises of superintelligence. These workers see utility in large language models but feel hype, forced deployment, and dismissal of valid critiques hinder legitimate uses. Workers fear speaking up due to career risks, layoffs, and pressure from leadership to embrace AI uncritically. Concerns include environmental sustainability and concentration of control among a few giant companies. The result is enforced conformity within tech and tension between frontline engineers and C-suite priorities, even as companies continue massive data-center buildouts.

Read at Futurism