The use of AI is one of the hottest debates today. Where and how we can use AI agents and AI systems in general is a discussion that sometimes can be difficult, especially when human lives are affected. The philosophical questions on what should be the goal of AI and what should be the goal of humans can be literally endless, especially since we have not yet answered any of the great metaphysical questions of purpose regarding ourselves.

And yet, AI is here now.

Most of the applications of AI have pros and cons, with the cons especially focused on the need for human supervision and control, the need for transparency, the need for good data to have a fair and ethical AI, the need for accountability. And as we go into the details the problems have no end, from intellectual property rights questions to the effects on working relations or to the effect of the overuse of AI to our own abilities.

However, even when this debate is ongoing, there are some applications of AI that are clearly ethical and positive for humans, without the need for so much debate and discussion. Of course the applications mentioned below are not without problems or open questions. But the pros outnumber the cons by such a margin that we can safely select them as initial applications of AI in this brave new world, while we figure out how to move on in other fields.

Examples of these applications include:

(1) Use of AI to assist people in need: Elderly people who live alone can be benefited from a robot augmented with AI, that will assist them with chores or alert the authorities in case of an emergency. Also people with disabilities can be greatly helped by AI systems, e.g. systems that support the navigation of blind people in cities that are usually not friendly to people with disabilities.

Important Notes: Even though the benefits are clear here, especially because we are dealing with humans, the need for strict quality control on the AI systems is of paramount importance. An AI app guiding a blind person that does not work is not something anyone wants. Hence, choosing safe ways to apply the support is important, e.g. have the AI systems supplement existing supportive measures and not rely entirely on them.

(2) Create new jobs to support the society: Some interesting examples of the use of AI and robots to support society and generate new inclusive job positions have came to light recently. For example, there is a cafeteria in Tokyo that employs people with disability to guide robots that serve, giving those people an employment opportunity.

(3) Disaster support: No one can argue about the usefulness of AI predicting a disaster before it happens. Even seconds of warning can save a life. Also AI-powered robots can be extremely useful when it come to the handling of the disaster after it happens. Sending a robot firefighter to handle fire and save lives is a perfect example that can only be seen positively from any perspective that you see it.

(4) Automations that save lives: Having a car that will switch off when it detects the driver being drunk is a positive thing. The same goes with a car that automatically brakes when it is about to hit a human being or another car. Jason Bourne would be bery displeased with not being able to smash another car during a high-speed spy chase, but I believe his dissent does not affect much the overall verdict here.

Important Notes: As in the first case, the AI working well is very important in this case. Automations of such nature (e.g. automations that take control of transportation means) should be carefully selected and implemented so as to make sure that there is no adverse effect. We do not want a disaster simply because we are trying to prevent another disaster.

The above examples are a core set of capabilities of the AI that can only be viewed positively, regardless of how one views AI in general. I am not saying there are not others.

For example, AI surely helps in conducting analysis of data and supporting research on new drugs that can save lives. However, computers have been assisting these computations for ages now, so it is not that AI provided something radically different than what we already had. And on top of that, the use of AI has the disadvantage of making scientists too dependent on it, thus reducing the true human innovation that historically has been the source of scientific progress. Scientific revolutions were never a product of data analysis and relying too much on that could have an adverse effect as well.

The examples do not stop here. I could go on forever by mentioning the use of AI in police work, in various other scientific fields, in multiple products that can help communication betewen people (e.g. translating instantly text to make people from different countries speak seamlessly - even though that is not as important as the apps that support people with special needs) et cetera. The catalogue can and will be updated in the future with more services AI-empowered applications can offer.

My first goal was to speak about the things that instantly come to mind when thinking of AI as something "good". Not to overanalyze it and think of the pros and cons, in order to to create a list of the things that pass a specific threshold of "usefulness".

Why do that?

Well...

Sometimes you need is that reassurance.

That the path you are following is the right one.

One example.

A noble goal.

And then you can start...

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~ Source: Affiliated site 2050withHumans (source)

~ Image from Depth Canvas.