Scale is deceptive, creativity is sacred
Some thoughts on the recent developments in world of tech and how it will impact the human race in coming time
It's been a while since I wrote something; I've been a little occupied with some major changes in life. I'll definitely write a life update once I'm through the tunnel on the other side.
I'm writing this blog because a couple of weeks ago, a new AI agent was released which potentially showed how it could code like an engineer. And then I went on my own trail of thoughts: where are things heading?
It's a difficult question to answer as an Indian, where most (80-90%) of the working population get paid for living by doing rudimentary work, which doesn't involve any creativity. It's good for survival, but you can't thrive in a world where developed countries are figuring out smart ways to fulfill their manpower needs.
It's almost virtue signaling in our country to be a hard worker. And honestly, you can't blame them, because the risk of failure of playing it smart is so huge that you might not get another chance at trying. So, everyone continues to play it safe (the old school way).
This has resulted in a hugely stunted population who can't think originally or creatively. The thought of failure overpowers the thought of trying first. It's a very difficult battle when you're in scarcity. Each penny you get from someone, you have to share a plethora of proofs that you're right and someone should believe or trust you.
In the coming age of the world, those who can think and act without inhibitions (good or bad) will dominate that specific sphere because the technology doesn't need proof of you being right; you can try and see if it sticks. And if it doesn't, no one will know. You move on to the next one with the learnings.
A couple of years ago, I used to mentor a few people on how to get started in programming or building any app by themselves or getting a job in the tech industry. But now, my word of advice is, just directly jump into building the product or idea you want and use GPT to figure out your way out of the hurdles you face on the way. You need to have some originality or a sense of creativity to navigate this.
What about the rest who can't?
Honestly, I can totally see the divide between "haves and have nots" getting very wide, and it's not just because of money, but more about the mindset and culture we are following. There are huge flaws in it, which cripple people from trying and failing and learning. We will have to lower the barrier for trying new things and be less judgmental about where they come from.
Because scale is deceptive, everything in this world is finite. Whenever you try to visualize "scale" or paint a picture of "scale," you imagine an infinite state. This infinite state gives us a sense of security and comfort, which results in stagnation and losing the zeal to chase excellence.
You will hit the rooftop sooner than you believe, and if you're deriving happiness from the delta between where you are today and where you will be tomorrow, life is going to be a lot of misery. I have learned it the hard way.
The true way to be happy is when you're feeding on something you love doing and something you believe in. It unlocks some superhuman capabilities in us which we really can't quantify. This is what will help us be masters in the future age of AI and Robots.
Don't live life in survival mode; there is no point in surviving in the misery of unrealized potential. I would rather thrive trying and figuring out. It doesn't matter if I fail, but what a great story to live in your mind in those last moments.
my understanding of tryst of life "Plan for the best but be ready for the worst".
Enjoying the journey is equally important (if not more) than reaching the destination. One of my friend used to often say, and I concurred, "When you do your Ph.D, you are the finished Product while Ph.D degree is just the by product". This is mainly because trials and tribulations mould you a lot to help you become the finished product. Real thesis work requires you to be creating. Current AI (primarily Generative AI and evolved products e.g. ChatGTP, Llama, Dalle, Gemini, and lastly Devin, and more to come) is good to reproduce (at lightening speed) what has been done in the past. I agree with Prof Chuck (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTjYuHDNooM), creativity of generative AI is zero, and increasing by N times will still keep it zero.
Use your human intelligence to be creative and enjoy the bitter-sweet fruits. I will sum up with "कौन कहता है कि आसमान में सुराख नहीं होता, एक पत्थर तो तबियत से उछालो मेरे यार।"
What a wonderfully written post