I am both intrigued by the possibilities of AI and concerned about the abuses of it.
In the former category, I was able to get an itinerary for a five-day anniversary trip, based on the interest I shared. It can also help to spark creativity. One way I’ve been using it lately is to figure out Excel formulas and otherwise get help with software tools. In the latter category, I’m worried about deepfakes, where someone can be convincingly imitated, even to the point of a video image. While AI can spark creativity, it can also stifle it, sometimes to our own detriment (think of a student who “writes” a term paper either the help of AI; the opportunity to improve one’s skills is lost.)
To keep abreast of developments in AI, I am subscribed to two daily emails. Sign-up links to both are below.
Both tell me the latest developments, and while many don’t apply to me, some do. I recently added Napkin and Gamma to my list of go-to sites when I need to illustrate a concept or to get started on a presentation.
Recently, however, The Neuron featured a troubling use of AI. In it, the newsletter featured a story of two college students who used Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses, which feature an inconspicuous camera, to identify whoever they were looking at to identify them. They then approached strangers on a subway and elsewhere and ask them if they were so-and-so or to ask if their address was such-and-such 😱.
Here’s an excerpt from the newsletter.
Here’s what happened: students Anhphu Nguyen and Caine Ardayfio cooked up an app called I-XRAY that turns these Ray-Bans into a doxxing machine. We’re talking name, address, phone number—all from looking at someone with the glasses.
Here’s how it works:
The Ray-Bans can record up to three minutes of video, with a privacy light that’s about as noticeable as a firefly in broad daylight.
This video is streamed to Instagram, where an AI monitors the feed.
I-XRAY uses PimEyes (a facial recognition tool) to match these faces to public images, then unleashes AI to dig up personal details from public databases.
Click here to see what happened when they used the technology on strangers. Fortunately, they’re not releasing the app 😅, just showing how easy it was to do 😳.
They also suggest you opt out of the following services, using the links provided.
I don’t know how this strikes you. For me, I’m reminded that tools can be used for good or ill, and that we need to be careful. The phrase, “what hath God wrought,” from the book of Numbers 23:23, which was the first message sent over telegraph, comes to mind. Maybe you prefer Eugene Peterson’s version from The Message, which says, ‘“What a great thing has God done!” Either way, the verse is badly taken out of context.