Losing Skills
Carissa Véliz · 2024
Abstract Might we be losing valuable expertise to AI? Will airplane pilots lose the necessary skills to fly in an emergency because they rely too much on automatic systems? Will students not develop critical writing and thinking skills as a consequence of using large language models? Will we depend on AI to navigate cities, run companies, or manage democracy? Is the worry of losing abilities to AI similar to Socrates’ concern that writing would vitiate our memory and cognitive abilities? This chapter argues that some skills will be lost as a result of the AI revolution, but how serious a loss it is depends on how reliable AI can be. There may be some things, from intimate relationships to critical thinking skills and safety measures, that might be wise not to delegate to AI.