Key findings
- Due to its data collection and sharing practices, GenAI raises privacy concerns, posing an increased risk to users.
- Forcing AI into apps can result in annoying user experiences and cluttered user interfaces.
- GenAI is not always helpful, can suppress originality and consumes a lot of energy.
Generative AI is undoubtedly an incredible technological breakthrough, but does it really need to be integrated into every single app and service I use?
For this reason, I believe this is not the case.
1 Data protection is a problem with GenAI
A major concern of generative AI is data protection and security.
Dedicated AI apps like ChatGPT or Gemini can mitigate this risk to some extent, but when these features penetrate Google Docs, Messages, and other everyday apps, it becomes really difficult to ensure that sensitive personal information is not exposed to AI.
AI companies’ privacy policies vary. Let’s take OpenAI as an example. OpenAI mentions that it “collects personal information contained in the inputs, file uploads, or feedback” and may share it with third parties.
Unless you opted out of OpenAI using your data to train its models, it’s likely that your information has already been used to train them. Not to mention, according to 404Media, researchers were able to extract ChatGPT’s training data.
Even if the privacy policies of major tech companies state that they will not share or use your data, you can hardly trust their word given their unimpressive track records.
2 Forcing AI into apps makes the experience annoying
If you’ve accidentally tapped the Meta AI icon while searching for a chat in WhatsApp, you know how annoying these features can be. Why would anyone in their right mind launch WhatsApp on their phone to “imagine a delicious dessert” or “invent a new language”?
It’s not just about WhatsApp or Meta; you’ll also find Google’s Gemini AI in Messages, Gmail, Drive, and other places. The AI overviews in Google Search also deserve a mention here.
What makes these generative AI features particularly annoying is that they make the UI of these apps ugly, especially when they are highlighted unnaturally.
3 Generative AI is not always helpful
There are use cases where AI is extremely useful, and there are circumstances where it is not. Or at least not yet.
Unfortunately, technology companies are more interested in jumping on the AI bandwagon without considering whether it will actually be helpful to users.
Likewise, the trend to deliver half-baked AI functions that are anything but helpful for users, does not improve the situation. Even AI overviews in Google search that once told a user to put glue on the pizza are a great example.
4 The use of GenAI destroys originality and authenticity
I might use AI to compose a deadpan, professional email. But when I’m messaging my family or commenting on a friend’s post, I can’t imagine using AI. There are other reasons why social platforms shouldn’t have generative AI.
Similarly, GenAI can be helpful in creative tools, but not all creative software needs AI. Moreover, creative professionals continue to debate whether such tools can match the originality and thoughts of a sentient human artist.
Therefore, it doesn’t really make sense to use generative AI in areas where authenticity and uniqueness are required.
5 Waste of energy
Training and using generative AI requires a significant amount of energy. To give an idea, training OpenAI’s GPT-3 consumed an estimated 1287 MWh (PDF) of energy. According to the IEA, a ChatGPT query consumes almost 10 times more energy than a Google search, while that amount of energy could power an average US household for 120 years.
It’s easier to justify high energy consumption when generative AI is used for actual, productive work. But integrating GenAI into every app leads to wasted energy (and of course more CO2 emissions) with no real benefit.
In conclusion, while Generative AI may be useful, it is not a technology that is required for every app to work. On the contrary, it raises privacy concerns, makes the user interface clunky, and leads to more energy waste. And most importantly, GenAI can have negative effects on your health.
