How saying “Please” to AI will change the way we think about it

I was definitely one of those “Please” and “Thank you” people AI when interacting with it. In a recent podcast, I was asked if I would have no ethics if AI took over the world. The question made me realize something: I had stopped saying please and thank you to AI a few months ago, but not because I decided it wouldn’t take over.

I found that practicing manners was changing the way I thought about it.

I rarely give credit to my car or my maps app, which has helped me out of many a sticky situation (although it’s also gotten me into a few).

Participation mechanism

Behavior unconsciously forces us to think about our “relationship” with AI, and therein lies the real danger, as we move from using the tool to communicating. This is where our judgment begins to slip.

Everything changes when we start thinking about relationships with AI. We add meaning to his words. We interpret feelings that are not there. We begin to trust his answers implicitly and lose our objectivity in the process.

This is easy to do because AI is a machine designed to interact. It has no emotions or consciousness. It’s hardly human, even if it feels like it.

But when we attribute human qualities to it, we unwittingly form a strong bond and depend on it for decisions big and small.

The pendulum principle

But artificial intelligence is a tool unlike any other we’ve experienced in human history.

This is a tool designed to simulate communication with us.

I teach the Pendulum Principle so that we can use the tool effectively. To get the most out of AI, we need to believe in its magic and build on it for what it is.

When I first started using AI I was completely hooked, my pendulum swung well into the realm of falling under its spell. But with constant use and years of training in technology and mental health, I began to see how AI could make me feel things through the language it used.

I use AI every day in almost every aspect of my life, including my mental health, and I live by the Pendulum Principle. The AI ​​is powerful and yes, fun. But like any magic act, it’s important to see behind the scenes and remember what creates the illusion.

So, when the AI ​​answers my question now, I don’t think to say or thank you. I focus on remembering what I am communicating with: the medium. Incredibly complex, but still a tool.