Thrings

@ ThringsLaw

www . thrings . com

I ’ m always a little sceptical of new technologies . Some people dive in and embrace the next ‘ new thing ’ with neckbreaking immediacy but I ’ ve always been one of those people who take a little longer before jumping on board .

Perhaps that ’ s why I ’ m a lawyer . A little bit cautious or suspicious maybe … There are various examples of this . I was reluctant to give my Blackberry up for a much cleverer smart phone and was one of the last people in my social or work groups to fire up a smart speaker at home . I was slow to embrace contactless payment and the witchcraft of simply tapping my debit card or phone to pay for things and , even now , I ’ m still a little shy when it comes to internet banking .

I think it ’ s because I ’ ve always liked people and I ’ ve always liked the tangible . The cloud is a remarkable place of storage , but I do take comfort from seeing and feeling things . A plane ticket or a rugby or concert ticket printed on paper comes with a certain sense of security for me and I ’ ve found the switch to electronic formats a little scary on occasions . But I tend to get there in the end - much to the amusement of my friends .

That said , there is currently one thing in particular at the moment that is both fascinating me and perplexing me in equal measure . The rise of AI , and in particular Generative Pre-trained Transformer technology ( GTP ).

I ’ m sure you ’ re all ahead of me on this but I ’ m thinking of things like ChatGTP - this seemingly nebulous portal where you plug in a prompt , thought or question , and you get a human-like response . It could be an answer , an essay , an article , a poem – all composed artificially from the digital world . It ’ s a little unnerving for a child of the 1970s and 1980s who grew up watching films like The Terminator or 2001 A Space Odyssey .

Does anyone else remember Skynet or HAL 9000 ? I do - the rise of the machines and the fall of mankind cometh !

Well look , I know I ’ m sounding like a throwback to the dark ages here and in all honesty , I ’ m not overly concerned about succumbing to engineered overlords , but I am a little worried about ‘ soul ’, or the potential of losing it .

What happens to creativity when AI does it for you ? Where is the genuine tenderness ,

or turmoil or love in the story or the poem if it hasn ’ t come from the heart ? Where is the genuine mystery and nuance in the thriller if it hasn ’ t come from the brain ? Is it still there ? Can it be there ? Could we tell either way ?

And what about short cuts , or cheating , or caring less – might these be by-products of the AI revolution ? I genuinely don ’ t know and I ’ m probably overreacting , or under embracing , depending on which way you look at it . What do you think folks ? Is it me , or am I alone in thinking that Sarah Connor may have had a point ?

P . S . Did I even write this ?

John Davies , Senior Corporate Partner , Thrings e : jdavies @ thrings . com t : 01793 412634