AI in 2025: Bold Future or Dystopian Nightmare?

We find ourselves at a pivotal point in history, confronted with anxieties and uncertainties that carry significant weight. Ideological divisions are provoking unrest and violence within the political entities of Europe and the Anglosphere. A widespread resentment towards the ruling class is simmering, steadily escalating toward a full-blown uproar. Artificial Intelligence (AI), once seen as an opportunity, is now perceived as a threat, poaching jobs across various sectors and not merely those involving cognitive or symbolic thought such as data analysis, content creation, coding, tax preparation, and accounting. AI has spread its influence to roles which can be commandeered by robots, transforming workplaces and unsettling economies.

At the helm of this unsettling shift are technological titans who are betting on the future of humanity as if it were a hand in a high-stakes poker game. The year 2025 will see investment in AI development exceed $600 billion, with companies and private investors vying for control over this seemingly boundless frontier. The vast rewards lure many, but advanced AI is a labyrinth hiding unknown dangers. Its inner workings remain mired in obscurity, perplexing even the brightest computer scientists. It’s agreed that AI’s relentless march will usher in drastic changes, yet the intricacies of these changes are uncertain.

The opinion among economists and scholars is fragmented. While some envision AI ushering in an unprecedented era of human prosperity, others caution about the potential annihilation of humanity. Although a wipeout of such proportion may seem hyperbolic, there is enough evidence at hand to warrant serious concerns. The digital eco-system, comprising of the internet, social media, and chatbots, has begun to reveal a partial picture of the future.

So far, the revelations have not been hopeful. Digital technology has introduced a host of challenges to mental health and societal cohesion. Instances of depression, cognitive impairments, societal fragmentation and heightened censorship are now common. The problem is global in scope, with over half of the world’s population utilizing smartphones for, on average, three hours daily.

Despite its potential perils, our society remains eager to delve deeper into the domain of superintelligent AIs. Perhaps it is because we are captivated by the pursuit of knowledge, or maybe greed has gotten the best of us, but the reality is that this exploration seems unstoppable. Technological moguls now wield significant influence over our collective trajectories, equal to the sway of many world leaders.

This newfound power has emboldened some of them to consider themselves potential emissaries of salvation. A strange fascination has taken root among these extraordinarily affluent tech entrepreneurs who seem to believe they can mend the world’s problems. They may be driven by altruistic motives or merely the illusion of grandeur.

Ideally, meaningful global projects should address substantial threats to people’s safety and well-being or cope with imminent crises such as educational deficits or potential civil conflicts in Western nations. However, the current focus on superhuman AI and space colonization speaks to a techno-political agenda that seeks to transcend our earthly existence rather than mend its fractures. It manifests a fatalistic longing to divorce humanity from its native planet and render it obsolete.

This ambition to fabricate technologies that enable us to abandon our earthly home—and possibly make our species redundant—bears the devastating beauty of a tragic paradox. It demonstrates the ultimate culmination of technological fatalism, an intoxicating yet unsettling harmony of human desire and creativity. This vision is rooted in René Descartes’s 1637 proclamation in his Discourse on Method.

Descartes vehemently dismissed conventional wisdom, deeming everything he had painstakingly learned at France’s premier institution of higher education as negligible. He proposed reconstructing the edifice of knowledge on the solid ground of mathematical analysis, leveraging the algebraic geometry he pioneered. Descartes saw this bold endeavor—though it still lacked an official moniker—as a grand project to dominate nature and consequently transform humans into its masters.

Descartes envisioned a future where infinite mechanisms enabled humanity to harvest the earth’s resources painlessly, liberated us from countless ailments, and could even confer immortality. He assigned the mantle of rulership to the scientists and projected science as the de facto religion of the state. This ambitious project laid the groundwork for the human relationship with technology.

Since the dawn of civilization, humans have been crafting tools to help achieve their aims, transforming not only their relationship with nature but also the dynamics among themselves. Previously, these developments were beholden to a larger concept of welfare, perceived through the lens of cultural norms and political configurations. However, technology has now moved into its final, post-human phase.

In this embarking phase, technology regards nature, our bodies, and our minds not just as passive substrates for manipulation but as active adversaries. While this evolution may prove jarring, it is not entirely without precursors. This audacious leap into the hitherto unknown is fundamentally a reaction to, and a symptom of, prevalent nihilism—characterized by a lingering sense of existential meaninglessness.

Ironically, technology, a catalyst for triggering this nihilism, is now offering itself as a solution to it. However, this solution arises out of a dystopian climate where life as we know it is seen as inherently devoid of deeper significance. Our readiness to gamble with our collective future exemplifies this viewpoint.

As we enter this brave new world of AI and technology, navigating the unknown with caution and foresight is paramount. With the power to shape our world comes the responsibility to ensure its safety and continuity. Tech magnates and lawmakers alike must consciously tread this razor’s edge.

Therefore, it is crucial that technological advancement does not overshadow the urgent need for enhancing aesthetic, ethical, and spiritual dimensions for a more holistic human development. Descartes’ idea of becoming ‘masters of nature’ must not turn into a dystopian nightmare where we become its slaves. As we move forward, it is essential that we strike a balance between technological development and the preservation of our cohesive, pluralistic, and compassionate humanity.