Mad Bots: Generative AI Wants to Sell You

What happens when a bot (“Bottie!”) seems to know you so well, it can write a convincing love letter?

A debate is raging over on my favorite science listserve about some research suggesting that given a large enough Large Language Model (LLM) from which to learn, AI can shows signs of an emergent of Theory of Mind (ToM).

In very, very loose terms, ToM is how I know the difference between me and you and can imagine what the world looks like from your perspective. It’s a very big deal in child development.

But what if ToM is more mechanical than biological? What if there is a kind of physics for consciousness? Something along the lines of structural color in a feather: Blue jays look blue because of how particles in their feathers bend light, not because of pigment. What if ToM is inevitable once it has amassed a large enough vocabulary and crossed a critical threshold for word order pattern recognition?

I have come to appreciate the Star Trek tradition of calling computers “Computer!” It serves as a useful reminder of who’s who in the conversation.

The reason we keep confusing faux and fact with ChapGPT and its cyber-brethren is entirely on us. These are sophisticated databases designed to deceive. This is the metaverse infiltrating our “verse.”

Now, the Coca-Cola, in partnership with business consultancy Bain & Company, plans to harness the power of ChatGPT to “to craft personalized ad copy, images, and messaging.” So the pitch for acidified sugar water, ideal for rotting teeth and turbocharging a global obesity / diabetes epidemic, will be algorithmically crafted to deliver a personalized message.

Great. The latest example of technology in the service of…what exactly? This is notnotnot the Jetson’s future I was promised.

Branding / Marketing / Design consultancies suddenly faced with an existential threat to their services argue that generative AI is a tool, kind of like a paintbrush or photoshop. And they’re right. But it’s a “good enough” tool, getting better all the time. Companies that could never afford the services of high end firms can now produce “good enough” branding. And those with the deep pockets will take more work in-house. The existential threat is about margins, not creativity.

To quote Lord Beckett, the East India Company villain from “Pirates of Caribbean” movies, “It’s just good business.”