Generative AI Will Never Produce Good Writing
I worked in generative AI for as long as I could take it, and I just think it's very empty, ultimately.
It doesn't do empathy. There are no feelings there.
It doesn't exist in the real world. There are no experiences there.
It doesn't have relationships. There are no connections there.
It doesn't have subjectivity. It isn't "subjected" to subjecthood--it doesn't live (period.) under a government (it's not interpellated), in the world (it doesn't experience weather, climate, the rotation of the Earth, the revolution of the Earth around the sun), or among people, animals, nor plants.
It doesn't emote.
It doesn't get tired.
It doesn't get hungry or thirsty.
It doesn't crave.
It doesn't remember, memorialize, get nostalgic, recall, nor does it forget.
It doesn't laugh, cry, yawn, stare, blink, get sick.
It doesn't get violent, it's can't be cruel.
It doesn't get angry, nor does it seek revenge.
It doesn't touch, see, smell, taste, or hear.
It doesn't read. It doesn't think. It doesn't listen. It doesn't "do."
It doesn't play.
It doesn't (despite what certain people invested in generative AI might think or want others to think) do art. It can't do art.
My adult life has been devoted to the humanities, and I think what keeps drawing me in is that the core questions we continuously explore within the frameworks and through the lenses of the humanities are ultimately unanswerable.
What's so addicting about it, though, is that in every conversation, in every reading of some work, in every viewing of a film or a painting, in every interaction between a human and anything, in every moment---there is something new, something expansive, and something that adds to our overall understanding of humanity.
Generative AI produces boring stuff. Sure, when it's correct, it could be informative, but it won't explore with you...
it won't go on tangents, or go down rabbit holes, or make random associations.
If you want an empty essay, a polished article with no soul, a seminar paper that proposes nothing new, a resume that doesn't speak to humans (idk--I don't want to work somewhere that will only consider my resume if it has certain keywords that feed the bots), then generative AI is fine. It's a tool, but it's not your friend, your confidant, your collaborator, your conspirator.
If you want to write something that's intense, deep, thought-provoking, powerful, persuasive, and emotional, then find a human editor with whom you can...
collaborate
experiment and test out ideas
articulate and rearticulate to get to what you mean to say
learn
relate
connect
share
build trust.
For another take, see Joanna Bryson’s work, including this recent post on their blog, which includes further resources.
