Thank you, Ken Cann, for bringing this very timely message.
Did you think a message about Artificial Intelligence wouldn’t apply to you?
Ken described two types of A.I… The first was the “narrow A.I.,” which is sort of like the basic, kindergarten version of computer intelligence. We’ve all been using it for years in our smartphones, our home automation devices, in medical diagnostic tools, and every time you get a customized Facebook ad for something you’ve just been talking about. How have you used this in your everyday life?
Do you think you are more likely to use artificial intelligence more in the near future? Why or why not?
Apple, Google, and Microsoft are pouring literally trillions of dollars into AI development. Each has already announced that the next iteration of their operating systems will deliver what amounts to an explosion of AI use.
Did you know that millions of high school and college students submit papers written by some form of artificial intelligence?
https://www.wired.com/story/student-papers-generative-ai-turnitin
Did you know that some pastors are using AI to write their sermons?
https://www.cnn.com/2023/04/11/us/chatgpt-sermons-religion-ai-technology-cec/index.html
Did you know that AI is used to “deepfake” politicians in election campaigns?
https://journalistsresource.org/home/how-ai-deepfakes-threaten-the-2024-elections
How is all this dangerous to us? What could this do to us individually, and as a society?
How can all this be helpful to us? What are some potential benefits of AI?
Check this out.. I really wish my wife would hike with me like she used to. (she refuses.) So, I uploaded this old 1980’s photo that I took of her and asked an AI to generate some images of her hiking with me. I gave some basic criteria (including bears in the background some) and here is what it produced:
UPDATE: Apparently, the video is not showing for some users. Sorry. Not sure why that is.
If it isn’t working for you, try this Youtube link: https://youtu.be/nuTRU6G45Ho
Sure, it is a long way from perfect, but this is what is available for FREE right now to anyone with an internet connection! What could happen next?
The thing is, AI can create images, but it will never be able to out-create God.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was formless and empty, and darkness covered the deep waters. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.
Genesis 1:1-2 NLT
And God created you to be in his image.
So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
Genesis 1:27-28 NLT
And Jesus tells us that we have a role to play here in this world.
“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
Matthew 5:14-16 NLT
Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
1 John 4:7-8 NLT