this post was submitted on 02 Sep 2024
822 points (93.1% liked)

solarpunk memes

4192 readers
61 users here now

For when you need a laugh!

The definition of a "meme" here is intentionally pretty loose. Images, screenshots, and the like are welcome!

But, keep it lighthearted and/or within our server's ideals.

Posts and comments that are hateful, trolling, inciting, and/or overly negative will be removed at the moderators' discretion.

Please follow all slrpnk.net rules and community guidelines

Have fun!

founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
 
top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] Sequentialsilence@lemmy.world 41 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Eh, most of the marketing around ai is complete bullshit, but I do use it on a regular basis for my work. Several years ago it would have just been called machine learning, but it saves me hours every day. Is it a magic bullet that fixes everything? No. But is it a powerful tool that helps speed up the process? Yes.

[–] bamfic@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago (3 children)

Who is getting the reward for speeding up your work? Do you get to slack off more? How long will that last? Or does more work get piled on, making your employer richer not you?

[–] Sequentialsilence@lemmy.world 25 points 10 months ago

I do, I’m freelance, I make more money.

[–] Sorse@discuss.tchncs.de 14 points 10 months ago

Not a problem of the AI

[–] blanketswithsmallpox@lemmy.world 4 points 10 months ago

Most people free up hours of writing emails to do their actual job.

[–] msage@programming.dev 4 points 10 months ago

What does it do to save you so much time?

[–] Matriks404@lemmy.world 22 points 10 months ago (2 children)

I've lately tested AI if it can allow me to practice Russian in a natural sounding dialogue. While it didn't sound 100% human (it was too formal and technical), it was a good practice.

So I wouldn't say that it can't be used for good things.

load more comments (2 replies)
[–] drosophila@lemmy.blahaj.zone 16 points 10 months ago

There are plenty of applications for machine learning, logic engines, etc. They've been used in many industries since the 1970s.

[–] mayo@lemmy.world 13 points 10 months ago

This post isn't contributing to a healthy environment in this community.

Well thought out claim -> good source -> good discussion

[–] HappyTimeHarry@lemm.ee 13 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (2 children)

LLMs helped me with coding and debugging A LOT. I'd much rather use AI than have to try and parse stack exchange and a bunch of other web forums or developer documentation directly. AI is incredible when i get random errors and paste them in to say "fix this" and it does and tells me HOW and WHY it did what it did.

[–] Excrubulent@slrpnk.net 18 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

I keep seeing programmers use this as an example of what LLMs are good for, and I've seen other programmers say that the people who do that are bad programmers. The latter makes sense because trusting an LLM to do this is to fundamentally misunderstand what your job is and how the LLM works.

The LLM can't tell you HOW or WHY because it doesn't know those things. It can only give you an approximation of words that sound like someone explaing HOW and WHY. LLMs have no fidelity.

It could be completely wrong, and you wouldn't know because you've admitted you're using the LLM instead of reading the documentation and understanding yourself.

That is so irresponsible. Just RTFM like good programmers have done forever. It's not that much work if you get into the habit of it. Slow down, take the time to understand HOW and WHY to do things yourself, and make quality code rather than cranking out bigger volumes of crap that you don't understand. I'm sure it feels very productive in the moment but you're probably just creating more work for whoever has to clean up your large quantities of poorly thought out code.

[–] pedz@lemmy.ca 5 points 10 months ago

And it only consumes the equivalent in electricity of what an American house uses for a few tears.

[–] solsangraal@lemmy.zip 12 points 10 months ago (1 children)

you're leaving out the main question: do they increase profit? YES.

so nothing anyone says matters. prepare your anus

[–] msage@programming.dev 4 points 10 months ago

Does it though?

How long before anyone actually looks up and says the emperor has no clothes?

[–] pedz@lemmy.ca 11 points 10 months ago

ITT: LLM helps me with mundane tasks so fuck the enormous energy requirements and its impact on environment!

https://www.forbes.com/sites/bethkindig/2024/06/20/ai-power-consumption-rapidly-becoming-mission-critical/

[–] unexposedhazard@discuss.tchncs.de 11 points 10 months ago (1 children)

I mean the students around me, that would have failed by now without chatgpt probably DO want it. But they dont actually want the consequences that come with it. The academic world will adapt and adjust, kind of like inflation. You can just print more money, but that wont actually make everyone richer long term.

load more comments (1 replies)
[–] boredsquirrel@slrpnk.net 8 points 10 months ago (2 children)

I am on an internship with like really nice people in a company that does sustainable stuff.

But they honestly have a list of AI tools they plan to use, to make automated presentations... like wtf?

[–] mayo@lemmy.world 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Same at my work and it's because the upper management have tasked middle managers with a way to 'use AI'. But when the tool solves a business problem it really is fantastic.

load more comments (1 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[–] ClamDrinker@lemmy.world 8 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago) (3 children)

Yeah... who doesn't love moral absolutism... The honest answer to all of these questions is, it depends.

Are these tools ethical or environmentally sustainable:

AI doesn't just exist of LLMs, which are indeed notoriously expensive to train and run. Using an image generator for example can be done on something as simple as a gaming grade GPU. And other AI technologies are already so light weight your phone can handle them. Do we assign the same negativity to gaming even though it's just people using electricity for entertainment? Producing a game also costs a lot more than it does for an end user to play. It's all about the balance between the two. And yes, AI technologies should rightfully be criticized for being wasteful, such as implementing it in places that it has no business in, or foregoing becoming more efficient.

The ethicality of AI is also something that is a deeply nuanced topic that has no clear consensus. Nor does every company that works with AI use it in the same way. Court cases are pending, and none have been conclusive thus far. Implying it is one sided is just incredibly dishonest.

but do they enable great things that people want?

This is probably the silliest one of them all, because AI technologies are ground breaking in medical research. They are seemingly pivotal in healing the sick people of tomorrow. And creative AIs allow people who are creative to be more creative. But they are ignored. They are shoved to the side because they don't fit in the "AI bad" narrative. Even though we should be acknowledging them, and seeing them as the allies they are against big companies trying to hoard AI technology for themselves. It is these companies that produce problematic AI, not the small artists, creatives, researchers, or anyone using AI ethically.

but are they being made by well meaning people for good reasons?

Who, exactly? You must realize there are far more parties than Google, Meta and Microsoft that create AI right? Companies and groups you've most likely never heard of before, creating open source AI for everyone to benefit from, not just those hoarding it for themselves. It's just so incredibly narrow minded to assign maliciousness to such a large group of people on the basis of what technology they work with.

Maybe you're not being negative enough

Maybe you are not being open minded enough, or have been blinded by hate. Because this shit isn't healthy. It's echo chamber level behaviour. I have a lot more respect for people that don't like AI, but base it on rational reasons. There's plenty of genuinely bad things about AI that have to be addressed, but instead you have to find yourself in a divide between people cuddling very close with spreading borderline misinformation to get what they want, and genuine people that simply want their voice and concerns about AI to be heard.

load more comments (3 replies)
[–] Dramaking37@lemmy.world 4 points 10 months ago

Most AI is being developed to try to sustain the need for content for social networks. The bots are there to make it feel lived in so they can advertise to you. They are running out of people who are willing to give them free content while they make billions off your art. So then, they just replace the artist.

load more comments
view more: next ›