Panic Forecast for the AI Bubble Economy Collapse: From the Perspective of Various 'Ignorance' in AI Ignorance Ethics
Weekly AI Ignorance Ethics News (Inaugural Issue)
In the past, bubble economy collapses caused by human ignorance have occurred repeatedly. The 17th-century Dutch tulip bubble and the dot-com bubble at the end of the 20th century are typical examples. This time, we analyze the risk that the current AI bubble economy will lead to a serious economic crisis from the perspective of ethical ignorance.
In an episode regarding the Great Depression in the United States in 1929, it is famous that JPK (Joseph P. Kennedy) heard a shoeshine boy talking about stock investments, sensed signs of over-investment, and sold his investment portfolio. People who do not even understand the basics of current computers aiming to become prompt engineers, people who cannot even define productivity shouting on Twitter that using this AI add-on will increase productivity by 2 times, no, 10 times, 20 times (is this talk of Kaio-ken?), but that the monthly fee of 2700 yen (less than 100 yen per day) is too expensive to use, unpopular comedians who do not even understand the basics of AI acting as bait on YouTube to explain AI, and 'AI-ignorant' instructors hosting AI seminars—this state of affairs shows signs similar to the shoeshine boy talking about AI.
In the past, bubble economy collapses and major crashes involving computers and algorithmic trading have occurred. Black Monday in 1987 and the Flash Crash in 2010 are examples of this.
The Lehman Shock was a global economic crisis triggered by the financial crisis that occurred in 2008. In this crisis, technical ignorance, intellectual ignorance, ethical ignorance, and social ignorance became significant issues.
From articles reported since May 2023, it is possible to predict that the AI bubble economy could collapse due to various types of ignorance. To overcome these problems, it is important to consider appropriate regulations, information disclosure, ethical responsibilities, and social impacts.
This WSJ article reports that investment funds are flooding into generative AI startups that do not even have business plans, and that ChatGPT is triggering an AI investment boom. However, from the perspective of AI ignorance ethics, it is clear that the following concerns are being ignored.
(1) Technical Ignorance: Investors investing without understanding specific technologies or algorithms may lead to over-investment and market instability.
(2) Ethical Ignorance: Ignoring the ethical aspects of AI technology, such as privacy, data security, and the elimination of bias and unfairness, may have a negative impact on the market.
(3) Intellectual Ignorance: Investors blindly trusting AI technology without understanding its limitations may lead to a loss of market confidence and a collapse of the bubble economy.
(4) Social Ignorance: The social impact of AI technology is not sufficiently considered, and the impact on employment and the widening of the digital divide may become serious. While it is often reported that the introduction of AI can be expected to improve productivity and have a positive impact on the economy, it is only a matter of time before the phenomenon of poverty amidst plenty due to overproduction occurs.
The following measures can be considered to address the above ignorance problems.
(1) Education and Awareness Activities: It is important to conduct education and awareness activities for investors and the general public to spread basic knowledge and understanding of AI technology. This can reduce technical ignorance and intellectual ignorance.
(2) Formulation of Ethical Guidelines: By formulating ethical guidelines regarding AI technology and requiring developers and investors to comply with them, risks caused by ethical ignorance can be reduced.
(3) Active Regulation and Policy Making: Governments and regulatory authorities can reduce risks caused by social ignorance by actively formulating and implementing appropriate regulations and policies regarding AI technology. This includes policies to address the impact on employment and reduce the digital divide.
(4) Improvement of Transparency and Accountability: AI technology developers and companies can reduce risks caused by ignorance by improving the transparency and accountability of their technology. This includes disclosing information about how the technology works and its limitations, as well as reporting on ethical considerations.
Through these measures, it is possible to reduce the risk of an AI bubble economy collapse caused by ignorance and support the sustainable development of AI technology.