Will thought production come to an end? Or, to put it more precisely, will we stop thinking?
The launch of the internet in 1993 was not just a communication revolution; it marked the beginning of a profound change for humanity in many aspects. Centuries-old established orders were disrupted, paving the way for a world where people live centered around the internet, and their thoughts become digitized. In the last few months, we have witnessed and experienced the growing interest in artificial intelligence (AI) technologies, which have been influencing our minds and, consequently, our social lives.
THE QUESTION IN SEARCH OF AN ANSWER
Last week, attending the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona as a guest of Turkcell, I observed an environment where this surrender was showcased. The main agenda was the current state of AI technologies and the question of "what comes next?" Since no one can provide a correct and convincing answer yet, it remains an open question. Normal intelligence cannot measure and evaluate the capacity of the AI it has developed. We are now living scenes from science fiction movies produced by Hollywood over the past 20 years.
THE CHINESE INVASION
Returning to the fair, there was tremendous interest, making it an organization that will overshadow all the fairs I have attended so far. The MWC, where the world's leading information technology companies showcase their capabilities and smaller firms view as a stepping stone, has been shaping the near and distant future of internet technology for the past 10 years. Today, the future is being shaped around artificial intelligence platforms. The hidden agenda in Barcelona was the Chinese showing an 'invasion-like' interest in the congress. Huawei closing one of the seven halls in the fair entirely, Xiaomi challenging with its electric car, and China Mobile's effort to reflect Chinese culture as the world's largest drew a lot of attention and discussion.
THE BIG WAR BEHIND THE CURTAIN
The era of mobility, which began with Steve Jobs introducing the first model of the iPhone in 2007, has evolved into the era of artificial intelligence by 2024. The impression I gained from the congress is that the moment when data wars break out behind the scenes of the still crawling artificial intelligence is imminent. While America currently appears to be a pioneer in the AI sector, the threat from China is at the door. Because there is a Chinese invasion in this field as well. Those who hold, process, and correctly analyze the data produced by users will manage the world over networks from now on. The largest data is in China. Both in terms of population and the data obtained through mobile technologies, China uses this information in the development of artificial intelligence technology.
THE DANGER OF "THINKING LIKE A CHINESE"
This is another topic for another article, but I want to mention it without skipping: we will see China's expansionism in artificial intelligence, just as we witnessed its change in the social media ecosystem with TikTok and its imposition of content creation formats and consumption algorithms to the whole world. If moral, ethical values, and legal standards are not defined, people worldwide will show signs of "Chinese-like" thinking in their thoughts while benefiting from artificial intelligence. As American cultural imperialism is replaced by China, it is crucial to draw attention to the need to establish indigenous and national platforms in artificial intelligence, just as in unmanned aerial vehicles. Selçuk Bayraktar's recently announced 'T3-AI.LE' project, if successful, will not only serve Turkey but humanity at large. I will close this topic here, but I will reopen it in future articles.
EVEN GOOGLE PANICKED
In Barcelona, I frequently discussed ChatGPT, Sora, and Gemini with technology journalists. We tried to make sense of the current situation. There is a tremendous interest in 'ChatGPT,' which produces written content according to demand. So much so that even the "internet monopoly Google," seeing the rapidly changing search habits, panicked and launched its artificial intelligence platform 'Gemini.' Finally, on February 15, Sora, which converts written texts into high-quality videos, was introduced.
THE END OF THINKING AND WRITING?
The integration of ChatGPT into professional fields and daily life in a short period was one stage that found a response. Now humanity is being tested with a new threshold. You won't write, you won't shoot films. You will speak, and artificial intelligence will instantly generate it for you. Worst of all, people will think that what artificial intelligence produces is something they have created themselves. They will be satisfied with this. After a while, content created by people who sit in one place, experience-deprived, unaware of nature, life, and difficulties will emerge, thinking at similar levels. In this vicious cycle, artificial intelligence, fed by human thoughts, emotions, habits, and data, will also become unable to generate.
THEATER SHOULD BE MADE A TRAGICOMEDY
However, it is clear that the stage of becoming a phone, gaming, and social media addict has not yet been completed. Humanity, struggling not to adopt the identity of an online and performance-oriented individual, is rapidly being pushed towards a new bottomless pit with artificial intelligence technology. There is a curiosity here. Returning from Barcelona, I thought about this: the tragicomedy of the relationship between human curiosity and trouble should definitely be staged through a theater play based on lives surrendered to artificial intelligence. Of course, before that, this play must be written by a person who thinks with normal intelligence. Let's see if we can successfully pass this new and challenging test? The possibility of thinking and behaving like a Chinese or an American bothers me the most. Right now, our only hope seems to be Selçuk Bayraktar. May Allah strengthen the power of thought.
